Sports
Kiss Of Death: FIFA Hammer Rubiales
The controversial lip-kissing of Spanish Women’s World Cup Winner, Jenni Hermoso has landed President, Spanish Football Federation, Luis Rubiales, suspension from all football-related activities.
A statement from the Federation of International Football, (FIFA) on Saturday revealed that the global football governing body has provisionally suspended the Spanish football chief, for 90 days, with immediate effect.
According to the statement, it was “decided today to provisionally suspend Mr. Luis Rubiales from all football-related activities at national and international level.”
The initial period of the suspension – 90 days, is meant to afford FIFA time to conduct disciplinary proceedings against the 46-year-old.
As part of efforts to preserve the integrity of the disciplinary proceedings, FIFA banned both Rubiales and the RFEF from contacting Hermoso and those close to her.
The development was the latest chapter in an intriguing tale involving the quartet of Rubiales, the RFEF, Hermoso and her international teammates.
The women who laboured to win the FIFA Women’s World Cup (FIFAWWC) for the first time in their country’s history has threatened not to honour future national call-ups, unless Rubiales was reprimanded for “assaulting” a woman.
They also maintained that the act had taken the shine off their World Cup win in Australia last Sunday.
The World Cup Winner, Hermoso told the world in a statement on Friday that Rubiales and the RFEF mounted “continuous pressure” on her, her family and friends to take steps to show that she had forgiven Rubiales, but she would have none of that.
Probably habouring some optimism, Rubiales passed up a chance to vacate his seat voluntarily at an emergency RFEF meeting on Friday.
Thereafter, on Saturday, the RFEF threatened legal action over Hermoso’s “lies” about the kiss.
According to Hermoso, “at no time” did she consent to the kiss, which Rubiales on his part had described as “mutual, euphoric and consensual”.
However, the RFEF maintained it would “demonstrate each of the lies that have been spread, whether in the name of the player, if that is the case, or by the player herself”.
The now infamous kiss, resonating across the globe, has seen the FREF add that it would take “as many legal actions as necessary to defend the honour of the President of the RFEF.”
In reaction to Rubiales claim, Hermoso made it clear that she felt “vulnerable and the victim of an assault.
“I want to clarify that at no time did I consent to the kiss that he gave me and in no case did I seek to lift up the president.”
As things stand, Hermoso, 33, along with 80 other Spain players, including the entire World Cup winning squad, said they were going on strike and would not play for the national team until the “leadership” changed.
The Ayomidiran Foundation, under the leadership of Hon Ayo Omidiran, has appointed four prominent women as ambassadors for its “Girls Play Sports” initiative, aimed at inspiring young girls to excel in sports.
The initiative has brought together Ayisat Yusuf, a former Super Falcons player and current sponsor of Ayisat Yusuf Football Club; Mary Onyali, a celebrated silver-winning Olympic sprinter; Onome Ebi, who represented Nigeria in five FIFA Women’s World Cups and captained the Super Falcons in several international competitions; and Olufunke Oshonaike, a six-time Olympic table tennis player who has won numerous medals for Nigeria.
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On the rationale for their appointment, Hon Omidiran asserted that ‘these accomplished athletes, known for their dedication and excellence, are role models for girls across Nigeria’.
The grand finale of the inaugural Girls Play Sports football tournament will take place in Abuja on September 29, 2024, where the ambassadors will participate in celebrating female athletic achievements and encouraging more girls to embrace sports.
The foundation also plans to expand the initiative to include sports like table tennis, basketball, and athletics in the future.
“We are honoured to have these sports legends on board,” said Hon Omidiran.
“Their success and passion for sports will inspire a new generation of female athletes, promoting empowerment through sports,” he added.
Arsenal captain Martin Ødegaard will be sidelined for an extended period due to an ankle injury he sustained during international duty with Norway.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta announced this on Wednesday.
Ødegaard twisted his ankle in Norway’s Nations League match against Austria earlier this month.
The national team doctor initially estimated that Ødegaard would be out for at least three weeks.
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However, recent scans have revealed ligament damage, leading Arteta to acknowledge the injury’s seriousness.
Arteta said, “The scans showed some damage, especially to one of the ligaments in the ankle. While I can’t provide an exact timeframe, it is significant, and we’ll miss him for a while. We’re hopeful it won’t be for months, but we’ll see.”
Arsenal, who were Premier League runners-up last season, will face Manchester City, the reigning champions, on Sunday.
The Gunners are currently second in the Premier League after a 1-0 win over Tottenham, trailing City by two points.
Nigeria’s Junior D’Tigress secured a thrilling 71-67 victory over Uganda on Friday, advancing to the final of the FIBA U18 Women’s AfroBasket 2024.
The closely contested semifinal took place at Pretoria University in South Africa.
With this win, Nigeria also earned a spot in the FIBA U19 Women’s Basketball World Cup 2025 in Czechia, alongside Mali, who dominated Cameroon with a 103-45 win in the other semifinal earlier that day.
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Despite Uganda defeating Nigeria in the Group Phase, the Nigerians turned the tables in this semifinal, claiming sweet revenge.
Nigeria, who last won silver in 2010, had only won one Group Phase game, a resounding 107-30 victory over Zimbabwe.
However, they managed to advance as one of the two best third-place finishers and made the most of their second chance.
In the quarterfinals, Nigeria faced Egypt, a team they lost to 72-60 in the group stage. However, the West Africans bounced back, defeating the Pharaohs 66-51 to secure their semifinal berth.
While Nigeria, led by coach Juliana Ojoshogu Negedu, fought hard to overcome Uganda, coach Omondi of Uganda was focused on earning a spot on the podium for the first time in the tournament’s history.
Nigeria entered the match with a statistical edge, thanks to standout offensive contributions from Idubamo Beggi and Abigail Isaac.
Uganda responded with notable performances from Resty Nanangwe, Modesta Anyango, and Mia Belinda.
In the final on Saturday (tomorrow), Nigeria will take on Mali, seeking to redeem their men’s team’s previous quarterfinal loss to the same West African rival.
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