Anthony Jay Robbins, an American author, coach, and public speaker, once said that people become what they do most of the time. This implies that people are inseparable from their actions.
Well, as a father of two daughters and a son who happens to be a young football player, this leaves me with a million questions. Will my children be victims of such circumstances? I hope not.
The rampant rape cases among football players across the globe speak volumes about the prestigious game. Is it that players are becoming undisciplined and unprofessional? Have they failed to manifest self-control, or is this a plot to drag their names into the mud? Where do such cases leave the game?
On Wednesday, March 21, 2024, judges in Brasilia ruled that former Manchester City and Real Madrid player Robson de Souza, known as Robinho, must serve a nine-year rape sentence.
A 40-year-old Robinho was found guilty by an Italian court in 2017 of taking part in the 2013 gang rape of a 22-year-old Albanian woman. However, he maintains that the sex was consensual, despite his looming prison sentence.
Over the years, almost all champion football players, such as Mendy, Ronaldo, and Neymar, among others, have been accused of rape and sexual assault.
However, after years of court trials, some have been found innocent of rape, attempted rape, and any sexual accusations that were levied against them.
Let us talk about some of the best-known sex cases of all time:
Ronaldo
Al-Nassr and Portugal international superstar Cristiano Ronaldo was accused of rape in 2010 by an American lady named Kathryn Mayorga. Mayorga claimed that the 5-times Balon d’Or winner raped her at a hotel in Las Vegas in 2009 and paid her $375,000 in 2019 to keep quiet.
Ronaldo, however, denied the accusation but confirmed they had consensual sex.
Neymar Jr
In 2019, Paris Saint-Germain and Brazilian forward Neymar was accused of rape by a Brazilian model identified as Najila Trindade. Trindade claimed she flew from Brazil to France to meet Neymar after they exchanged messages on Instagram. She alleged that the PSG star met her at a hotel drunk and forcefully had sex with her without her consent.
The case was dismissed in court, and Neymar was cleared after the police failed to find enough evidence to substantiate the accusation made by the Brazilian model.
Callum Hudson-Odoi
An English-born professional footballer, Callum Hudson-Odoi, was arrested in 2020 on grounds of sexual assault. He was, however, cleared of the allegation a few months later, after the Metropolitan Police ended their investigations.
Shortly after his release, he took to X and said, “I have stayed silent and assisted the police fully throughout their inquiries, as I knew the day would soon come when my name would be cleared.”
Mason Greenwood
In January 2022, Manchester United forward Mason Greenwood was arrested after disturbing images and videos of his girlfriend surfaced, prompting allegations of attempted rape and assault. He was, however, cleared of the allegations after the Crown Prosecution Service dropped the charges due to the withdrawal of key witnesses.
In hindsight, such cases or accusations not only cripple players’ careers but also paint an ugly image of the entire football game. However, they leave me wondering if the charges were dropped after bribery or if they were actually found innocent.
The time is yet to come when footballers are viewed as professional rapists rather than professional players. It is high time stakeholders in the soccer fraternity got back on the table and established guidelines to protect the careers of players and the image of football.
