Manchester United’s Brazilian striker Antony. PHIL NOBLE (Portal)
Brazil has withdrawn 23-year-old Manchester United striker Antony from the national team squad after new details emerged this Monday about the sexist aggression complaint lodged against him by his ex-girlfriend. The Brazilian Football Federation said in a press release that the Canarinha “has decided to recall the football player Antony due to the facts that have come to light, which need to be investigated and in order to save the alleged victim,” according to the national team CBF. The player protests his innocence.
The decision, which separates him from Brazil’s first two games (against Bolivia and Peru) for the South American qualification for the 2026 World Cup, comes two weeks after the Rubiales case over the non-consensual kiss of the president of the Spanish federation on Jenny Hermoso. The night Spain won the World Cup and the subsequent international scandal that shook the very foundations of football in that country. And a few months after complaints from the Corinthians women’s team and a section of fans brought down coach Cuca for raping a girl decades ago for which he never served a sentence.
São Paulo civil police are investigating Antony after his ex-girlfriend Gabriella Cavallin, a 23-year-old DJ, reported him for domestic violence. The publication of several photos and videos involved in the investigation following the recent attack was the catalyst for football authorities’ decision to remove it while the investigation continues.
Antony later explained on Instagram that he had taken the matter seriously from the beginning and cooperated with the authorities: “I can confirm with certainty that the allegations are false and that the existing evidence and the evidence presented prove that I am innocent. “of the allegations made.”
The complainant claims that the seizures began a year ago when she was pregnant. Then she suffered a miscarriage.
Instead of Antony, the coach of the Brazilian team, Fernando Diniz, has nominated Arsenal striker Gabriel Jesús. This Friday, Brazil hosts Bolivia and four days later plays in Peru.
Before the Rubiales case, Brazilian football experienced several scandals that put sexist violence in the spotlight. Dani Alves has been in custody in Spain since January last year, accused of raping a woman in a Barcelona nightclub. And Robinho was sentenced to nine years in prison in Italy for raping a woman, but remains free for now because he fled to his country, which does not extradite nationals. Brazil’s Supreme Court is considering a request from Italian authorities that the former footballer serve his sentence in his home country.
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