Many football superstars unknown to many have allegedly been involved in various sex or rape scandal as they ply their trade in Europe.
This is because footballers’ career and their personal life has always been under the spotlight, making it practically impossible for them to hide anything particularly if it involves sexual misconduct.
It is difficult to imagine a footballer, with all the women that are craving for them, being involved in forcible sex.
Players like Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar da Silva and Benjamin Mendy are the most recent big scandals among others.
Recently, a feminist campaign group reminded the football world of an alleged sex scandal involving Portuguese legend and five-time Ballon d’Or winner
The Level Up feminist group said they wanted to “remind crowds” of rape allegations against Ronaldo.
Ronaldo has made his debut match for United after he left Italian side Juventus.
Cristiano Ronaldo
The case began when Kathryn Mayorga said she was assaulted by the Manchester United player at a Las Vegas hotel back in 2009.
But Ronaldo denied the charges in 2019, his prosecutor said
According to reports, Ms Mayorga had reached an out-of-court settlement with Ronaldo in 2010.
The United player paid her £288,000 ($375,000) not to publicize the allegation.
Ronaldo’s lawyers previously said the agreement was “by no means a confession of guilt.”
According to them, the player was advised “to put an end to the outrageous accusations made against him, in order precisely to avoid attempts to destroy a reputation built thanks to hard work, athletic ability and behavioral correction”.
During the #MeToo movement in 2018, Ms Mayorga sought to re-open the case.
Neymar Jr
Brazilian superstar, Neymar da Silva is another big name in the football world that has been accused of rape.
In 2019, Najila Trindade said she had been left “traumatized,” as she accused the Paris Saint-Germain forward of raping and violently assaulting her.
She was 26-year-old as of 2019, while Neymar was the world’s most expensive player after a transfer deal from Barcelona to PSG.
His accuser claimed they met at Hotel Sofitel Paris Arc Du Triomphe after a series of conversations on Instagram.
But his accuser said, “There was a sexual intent, it was a desire of mine. I think that was clear to him. And he asked when I could go and I said at that moment I couldn’t, for financial reasons, I couldn’t go, and also because of my schedule at work.
“And so he suggested ‘well, but I can solve that’ and I went. With money, with the ticket.
“I had the desire of being with Neymar and when I got there everything was good, everything was fine, the messages, I was going to succeed, do you understand? But when I got there, he was aggressive, totally different from the guy I met through the texts.
“Still, to that point it was fine. Because I really wanted to be with him, I thought, let me try to get a handle on this. And we started to caress each other, to kiss each other and then he undressed me.
“From the moment that he held me, violently hitting me, he was forcing me to stay there, in that place. I don’t think that just because I was keen to be with him that he had the right to do that to me.”
But in September 2019, Trindade and her former husband, Estivens Alves, were accused of lying to police and attempting to blackmail the Brazilian.
Benjamin Mendy
Benjamin Mendy of Manchester City was recently charged with four counts of rape and one count of sexual assault, Cheshire Police confirmed.
Three complainants accused the 27-year-old footballer that it took place between October 2020 and August 2021.
The Frenchman also plays for the French National Team.
In August 2021, the police said, “Cheshire Constabulary and the Crown Prosecution Service would like to remind everyone that criminal proceedings against Mendy are live and that he has a right to a fair trial.”
Karim Benzema
Benzema will appear in a court between October 20-22 this year on blackmail charges. He could face up to five years in jail and a fine of €75.000, if he pleads guilty.
In 2015, Benzema and former Bayern Munich player, Frank Ribery, discovered a tape that Valbuena, their French teammate had made of him having sex with his girlfriend.
They saw it as a money-making opportunity to blackmail Valbuena to prevent the tape being leaked.
They allegedly told him to pay them over €100,000 for the tape to be destroyed. The allegations led to the suspension of Benzema from the national team.
