List of All Articles with Tag 'sports'

Spanish football chief Luis Rubiales was dragged deeper into scandal as prosecutors opened a probe, and his mother

Uefa will take no action on an astonishing request by the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) to be expelled over the Luis Rubiales crisis, as the federation president now faces an investigation from Spanish prosecutors for sexual assault. In other developments of a story that even Uefa officials were describing as “absurd” and “stranger by the moment”, Rubiales’ mother Angeles Bejar locked herself in a church to go on hunger strike, with police and doctors eventually intervening. Such details have stunned even the most experienced people in football, but it is the request to the European body that is being seen as the most significant, given it sums up how surreal the story has become. With Rubiales facing a series of official complaints and a government process that could yet see him banned from sport in Spain for two to 15 years – to go with his current 90-day suspension from Fifa – the federation sent a request to Uefa to be expelled for breaking Uefa’s own statutes on state interference. Expulsion would mean clubs including Real Madrid and Barcelona kicked out of European competitions such as the Champions League. The move has been interpreted as “bluster” and “brinkmanship” by the federation in order to support Rubiales, but it would still involve all of Spain’s club and national teams being removed from competition, denying them of income and – in the words of one – “setting Spanish football back years”. The Independent has been told that Uefa will not take action and that the government’s involvement does not meet the criteria for state interference. Victor Francos, the president of Spain’s Higher Council for Sport who has become a central figure in this situation, stated on Monday that all of the relevant bodies are “acting within the regulations as they stand”. Rubiales being punished according to regulations and rules is different to the government just ousting him, which it cannot do, and has created an almost Kafkaesque circus over what remains a serious issue. Underpinning it all has been this Spanish government’s willingness to take on issues of equality and sexual harassment. On that, the Spanish Prosecutors Office will ask Jenni Hermoso if she wishes to press charges against Rubialies, after she stated that the kiss was not consensual. It was that statement which led Rubiales’ mother to go on hunger strike in a church in his home town in Montril, demanding that Hermoso “tell the truth” about the incident. There have also been public accusations from one of Rubiales’ cousins that the Spanish midfielder changed her story – something that did not happen. All of this comes amid Fifa’s directive that Rubiales not contact Hermoso or her family, to go with the 90-day suspension. Spain's Administrative Court for Sports has meanwhile been meeting all Monday to examine four complaints against Rubiales. Should it decide to open proceedings, it could mean the official is suspended for even longer than Fifa's 90-day provisional punishment. In that event, the Spanish government has confirmed it would take action. “If the court upholds the complaint and begins to process that case, we can request the provisional suspension of the president of the RFEF until TAD finishes analysing it and takes their decision,” Sports Minister Miquel Iceta said on Friday. Also on Monday morning, Spanish player’s union Futpro – representing Jenni Hermoso – further clarified Hermoso’s stance while describing a “structural problem” in the Spanish federation. “Those who applauded Rubiales, [at the assembly] in my opinion, should not continue in their positions.” While Rubiales’ position as vice-president of Uefa has itself led to criticism of the European body for a lack of comment, Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin has been in constant contact with Fifa. The position is that since the events fall under the disciplinary jurisdiction of Fifa – because the World Cup was a Fifa event – it was agreed that Fifa’s disciplinary bodies would handle the case, something Uefa does not feel it should comment on. The global football representative body FifPro is meanwhile yet to receive an official response from Uefa to a letter sent on Friday requesting disciplinary action against Rubiales. Read More Luis Rubiales’ mother locks herself in church and goes on hunger strike Luis Rubiales news LIVE: Police investigate president for alleged sexual assault Spanish FA launch ‘sexual violence protocol’ against Rubiales ahead of urgent meeting Spanish football’s ‘MeToo moment’ is a mirror for the entire game Spain coaching team quits over Luis Rubiales row – but manager backs president Fifa suspends Luis Rubiales and coaching staff walk out over World Cup kiss row

Bet365 is celebrating Kentucky's sports betting launch by giving new users a $10 bonus for every TD scored in Lions vs. Packers on Sept. 28! Find out how to claim this exclusive offer here.

Tennis’s U.S. Open has only been an “open” since 1968. Here’s why.

EA Sports FC 24 ratings leak revealed the overall ratings for both Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

The dearth of Black coaches leading major college football programs routinely draws scrutiny

New DraftKings users in Kentucky will receive a $200 pre-registration bonus just for signing up! See here how to claim this great offer.

The United States is going to the second round of the Basketball World Cup

The mother of the Spanish football federation president under fire for kissing a player during the Women’s World Cup awards ceremony has started a hunger strike in a church in southern Spain in defense of her son

Algeria midfielder Nabil Bentaleb has signed a three-year contract with Lille that will see him return to the French league club where he honed his skills as a youngster

The 2023 U.S. Open features several players who have made comebacks to tennis after being away for a while

South Sudan is the world’s youngest nation, only gaining its independence 12 years ago