Ex-Premier League star reveals sexual assault by former TV celebrity

Former Liverpool and Newcastle striker Andy Carroll has spoken publicly about being sexually assaulted by dance coach Kevin Adams, revealing the traumatic experience in his new autobiography.

The 37-year-old kept the ordeal private for years before deciding to tell his story, hoping his experience could encourage other male victims to speak when they feel ready.

Carroll detailed the incident in his book, Owning It, explaining that Adams had invited himself to his home after a Newcastle match to watch boxing.

The footballer said he had consumed several drinks before becoming lightheaded and eventually going to bed.

Carroll said he woke to find Adams under his duvet attempting to perform a sex act on him. He wrote that he struck Adams and dragged him outside before locking the door and calling the police.

The former striker said the case became a deeply distressing experience that lasted two years. Adams denied the allegations and claimed he had been assaulted by Carroll, but he was subsequently convicted of sexual offences at Chelmsford Crown Court and sentenced to 20 months in prison in 2023.

Adams was also placed on the Sex Offender Register and banned from entering the village where Carroll lived.

Adams, now 59, had appeared as a coach on BBC talent show Fame Academy in 2002 and later featured on Strictly Come Dancing: It Takes Two in 2021. He had also run a children's dance school in Essex before the company ceased operations in 2022.

Carroll initially struggled with whether to reveal the incident publicly, describing the court process as humiliating and saying the trauma affected his ability to concentrate, including while playing football.

He eventually decided to include the story after lengthy conversations with his girlfriend Lou Teasdale and publisher.

“Now that Kevin Adams has been named in court documents as my abuser, I can confirm it,” Carroll said. “Hopefully now I can finally start to put this chapter behind me.”

The former England international has since received messages from men sharing their own experiences of sexual assault. Carroll said those responses reminded him of the importance of allowing victims to speak on their own terms. “If me talking about it helps just one person then good it will have been worth it,” he wrote.