Former New York City FC coach Ronny Deila is being investigated by Israeli authorities over suspicions of sexually harassing a female taxi driver in Tel Aviv.
Deila, who was NYCFC’s head coach when the club won its first MLS Cup in 2021, allegedly made sexual remarks to the woman and refused to pay his fare for the ride after a night out drinking, Israeli news outlet N12 reported.
The alleged incident is said to have occurred on Thursday night, and Israel Police questioned the 50-year-old soccer coach, releasing him after under restrictive conditions.
Deila has been in Israel since February, when he took over as head coach of Maccabi Tel Aviv, which plays in the top flight of Israeli soccer.
The former MLS Cup-winning coach confirmed in a statement to N12 that he was being investigated for sexual harassment and apologized for his actions.
“An incident occurred in the early hours of Thursday morning, during my trip home in a taxi. I do not remember the details of the incident, as I had too much to drink and therefore chose to take a taxi,” the statement read. “If my words offended the taxi driver, I apologize to her sincerely and wholeheartedly for that. I would also like to apologize to all the club members and to our wonderful fans. This conduct does not meet the standards and values that I set for myself. I take responsibility for the situation and undertake to learn from it, improve and handle these matters in a professional and appropriate manner. Again, I sincerely apologize.”
This would be the second alleged incident Deila has been involved in this year since arriving in Israel.
Deila had been embroiled in a controversy after it was reported he had been forcibly kicked out of a bar in Tel Aviv after the staff at the establishment refused to serve him more alcohol, according to multiple outlets.
Police confirmed that they were called over a complaint that a “foreign citizen” had been arguing with the staff of an establishment after they refused him service.
“Police officers quickly arrived at the scene, approached the foreign citizen and demanded that he leave the place immediately — and he did so,” a police spokesperson told the Glasgow Times.
The manager of the establishment — the Berlin Bar — denied that Deila was drunk or abusive, and Deila called the reports “just gossip.”
Deila led NYCFC for two and a half seasons and was at the helm when they captured their first MLS championship in 2021.
Under Deila, New York City FC went 46-29-15.
He departed in the middle of the 2022 season to coach Standard Liège in the Belgian Pro League.
He served as the head coach of Scottish Premiership club Celtic from 2014-16.
Deila did another stint in MLS in 2025, when he served as head coach of Atlanta United for one season.
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