Archive photo of Panama President Manuel Arias© X (Twitter)
The Panamanian Football Association announced on Thursday that FIFA had banned its president, Manuel Arias, from performing his duties for six months, after he described a player as “fat.” Federation President Arias was punished for using “inappropriate language” regarding Marta Cox, who plays for the Panama national team and the Turkish club Fenerbahce. Arias had described the 27-year-old as “fat” to reporters in March 2023 after the player criticized women’s football in Panama, which has an amateur league where most players do not receive a salary or do not have access to proper stadiums or training facilities. .
“She’s not in good shape, she’s fat, she can’t move on the court,” Arias said at the time.
Cox threatened to leave the national team, which prompted Arias to apologise.
He called his choice of words “very unfortunate” and said Thursday that he accepted the punishment because of a “serious mistake he made.”
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