A pundit for the BBC, Sky Sports and Channel 4 has been charged with sexually assaulting a woman.
Danika Priim, 40, is due in court next month after it was alleged she ‘intentionally touched a woman aged 16 or over’ at Horsforth Cricket Club in West Yorkshire on July 22, 2022.
It is alleged that the former England, Bradford Bulls and Leeds Rhinos star assaulted the woman ‘when she did not consent’ and she ‘did not reasonably believe’ that the alleged victim was consenting.
She appeared before Leeds magistrates’ court last week. No pleas have been entered at this stage and Priim is now due before Leeds Crown Court on March 13.
Priim, of Keighley, West Yorkshire, retired from playing rugby league in 2021 and has since moved into broadcasting. She enjoyed a stellar six-year career, playing for England at the 2017 World Cup in Australia and winning the Challenge Cup and Super League double with Leeds in 2019.
She has become a prominent pundit since retiring from playing aged 37, working for the BBC at the Rugby League World Cup in 2022 and at the Paris Olympics last year where she covered the rugby sevens.
Priim has also featured on Sky Sports’ coverage of rugby league and on Channel 4’s Super League production in 2022. She has been nominated for an award at the Broadcast Sport Awards.
As well as working in the media, Priim is currently serving as a vice-president of the sports governing body The RFL, having been appointed to the board in September alongside president Adam Hills, the presenter of Channel 4 show The Last Leg.
Her career took off in 2024, despite her previously admitting she had considered stepping back from punditry due to abuse on social media. “I love what I do. I absolutely love every second of it.
“I’m in a phenomenal opportunity that I get to go and do loads of new things. But is it worth the day or two where I have cried?” Priim revealed last year.
“You know, getting inbox messages from people direct messaging me to say that they want to slit my throat because I didn’t like their team.
“I have thought what’s the point? I have thought about stopping doing it at the end of last year. But then you remember that the people who employ you are the ones whose opinions matter. I’d say 90 per cent of the time it’s okay, but the other 10 per cent can be a really rough ride.”