FIFA suspended the president of Panama's soccer federation for a fat comment about a star player in the women's national team.
The Arias Guide suggested midfielder Marta Cox was “fat” after she made critical comments about the formation of the national team, which qualified for the 2023 Women's World Cup.
“President Arias is banned for six months, until July 14, 2025, when he cannot participate in federal soccer activities,” the Panamanian soccer federation said in a statement late Thursday.
The ban removes Arias from a series of men's national team matches in the CONCACAF region: Nations League games in March, two qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup in June and the Gold Cup tournament in the United States scheduled for June 14 -6 July. of the men's 2023 Gold Cup, losing to Mexico.
Arias said Thursday on social media that his suspension was due to “unfortunate” comments in March 2024.
“I used very unfortunate language that should never have been used,” Arias said on X, formerly known as Twitter.
The federation said vice-president Fernando Arce would be interim director until the ban ends, and acknowledged he still had work to do in women's football.
Cox recently signed for Turkish club Fenerbahce after playing in Mexico for Xolos. The 27-year-old scored a Women's World Cup goal in a 6-3 loss to France in the group stage.
