EA appears to have removed Ronaldo from its promo material.
Cristiano Ronaldo is facing accusations of sexual assault from a Las Vegas woman, Kathryn Mayorga, accusations which originally appeared in German magazine Der Spiegel in 2017 and did so again in an an interview with Mayorga published in Der Spiegel last weekend.
Ronaldo has publicly denied the accusations.
It now appears that gaming giant EA Sports, who produce the FIFA games, have removed Ronaldo from online promotional images for the game.
Ronaldo, perhaps the most high profile footballer on the planet, had originally been the face of the game — which was released just two weeks ago.
Meanwhile @EA removed #CristianoRonaldo picture from the website. Old and new versions ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/NaeofgDPFY
— Francesco Porzio (@fraporzio95) October 5, 2018
The move follows a statement that the gaming company made days ago, which read: “We have seen the concerning report that details allegations against Cristiano Ronaldo. We are closely monitoring the situation, as we expect cover athletes and ambassadors to conduct themselves in a manner that is consistent with EA’s values”.
That statement stands in stark contrast to the statement released by Ronaldo’s club Juventus, who have been roundly criticised for their response on Twitter.
.@Cristiano Ronaldo has shown in recent months his great professionalism and dedication, which is appreciated by everyone at Juventus. 1/1
— JuventusFC 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@juventusfcen) October 4, 2018
The events allegedly dating back to almost 10 years ago do not change this opinion, which is shared by anyone who has come into contact with this great champion. 2/2
— JuventusFC 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@juventusfcen) October 4, 2018
It was confirmed earlier this week that the Las Vegas Police Department had reopened an investigation into sexual assault claims made in June 2009.
Most recently, Ronaldo has been left out of Portugal’s most recent international squad for games against Poland and Scotland later this month.
