The Disciplinary Board (CD) of the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF) has sentenced the former coach of the Famalicão women’s football team, Miguel Afonso, to 35 months of suspension.
This decision follows sexual harassment complaints formalized in late September by several players representing Rio Ave in 2020-21.
According to the communiqué of the Disciplinary Board, Non-Professional Section, the coach has been convicted of five disciplinary offenses classified as very serious and must pay 5100 euros in addition to 1050 days (35 months) of absence from football.
Famalicão’s sports director, Samuel Costa, has been convicted of three disciplinary offenses classified as very serious and will face an 18-month suspension (540 days) and a fine of EUR 3,060.
The CD recalls that the disciplinary process was urgently launched on September 30 to establish the possible disciplinary responsibility of sports agents Miguel Ângelo Silva Afonso and Samuel Costa Matos for alleged discriminatory behavior based on gender and/or sexual orientation. . , following news published in various media and notified to the Disciplinary Board, as well as anonymous complaints filed through the FPF’s Integrity Platform.
In the investigation phase of the case, “18 investigations were conducted on victims or witnesses, investigations of the defendants, analysis of more than 60 documents, in addition to audio and video support of the investigations”. The indictment has since been filed, announced on October 21 to the defendants, who have submitted a written defense to the file and identified six witnesses to be heard.
According to the statement, Miguel Afonso will have asked a player to send him photos of her body, promising it would be “secret” after he also tried to understand the athlete’s sexual orientation. “Ahahaha think of affection so the way you’re going to show me the before and after ahahah” or “It can create a bad environment or problems because I know I’ll help you here and send you pictures etc… And secretly is it more fun” were some of the messages sent. The coach will also have questioned a player whether he felt “horny” to himself and tried to touch an athlete’s groin area when she was suffering from an injury, noting that player had “good thighs” and ” good legs”. .
Samuel Costa will have said that he would like to perform “a lot of oral sex” on a player and that, in relation to others, he resorted to expressions such as “I smell like lesbos shit”, “bicharada”, “they are real.” gay”, “fuss”, “lesbiquities” and “they’re all lesbians”.
Source: DN
