In the wake of rape accusations brought against Juventus footballer Cristiano Ronaldo, Nike--who reportedly has a $1 billion dollar contract with the player--has said they will, "continue to closely monitor the situation" but has not expressed any intention of suspending Ronaldo's contract.
EA sports, which also has a contract with Ronaldo, made similar comments. Separately, Juventus, whose stock doubled after their July purchase of Ronaldo, said: "Cristiano Ronaldo has shown in recent months his great professionalism and dedication, which is appreciated by everyone at Juventus." Their follow-up tweet seemed to imply that if the accusations proved true, their opinion of Ronaldo wouldn't change.
The accusation dates back to 2009, when Kathryn Mayorga says she met Ronaldo at Rain Nightclub in Las Vegas, Nevada on June 13. The footballer allegedly invited Mayorga and her friends to his penthouse suite, where he gave her shorts and a T-shirt to wear in the Jacuzzi. As Mayorga changed in a bathroom, she claims Ronaldo came in, exposed himself and asked her for oral sex, which she refused. Then, Ronaldo allegedly pulled her into a bedroom and raped her as she screamed, "No, no, no," CNN reports. Mayorga reported the incident to police and submitted to a rape kit later that day.
Fearing humiliation and retaliation from the soccer star and his lawyers, Mayorga didn't initially name Ronaldo as the perpetrator. The Las Vegas Police Department confirmed that Mayorga did not give the police the assailant's name in her 2009 complaint. She claims she received $375,000 from Ronaldo in exchange for her silence. Her lawsuit seeks to void the settlement and non-disclosure agreement.
Ronaldo denied the accusations in October 3rd tweets:
In a statement, Leslie Stovall, Mayorga's co-counsel, said her client wants to hold Ronaldo accountable and protect other women.
Brooke Ivey Johnson is a Brooklyn based writer, playwright, and human woman. To read more of her work visit her blog or follow her twitter @BrookeIJohnson.
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