UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin has come under fire after warning Lionesses manager Sarina Wiegman that her Coach of the Year trophy was ‘tough’.
It was Wiegman’s second time receiving the UEFA trophy and she dedicated it to the Spanish team that defeated England in the World Cup final.
However, when Ceferin handed over the prize at the Monaco event, he told Wiegman: “Watch out, it’s tough.”
Social media users were quick to condemn the UEFA president over the comment.
One wrote: ‘Absolutely not the UEFA president telling Sarina Weigman, ‘Watch out, it’s tough’ when she awarded her coach of the year. Honestly, mate… after the past two weeks, do you want to be condescending?’
UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin presents the Coach of the Year trophy to England manager Sarina Wiegman in Monaco
Sarina Wiegman dedicated her UEFA Women’s Coach of the Year award to Spain
Social media users were quick to condemn the UEFA president over the comment
One said it was another example of a man telling a woman that a trophy is too heavy
Another called men in football “cringey” towards women involved in the sport
Another wrote: ‘What’s the matter when men tell women to be careful that the trophy they’re about to receive is heavy? It just happened again.’
A third tweeted: “Why are men in football so wary of the women involved in the sport?”
It has been less than two weeks since England’s painful 1-0 defeat to Spain in the final in Sydney.
However, Spain’s glory has been overshadowed by the ‘Kissgate’ scandal which saw Spanish FA president Luis Rubiales bizarrely kiss star Jenni Hermoso.
Wiegman received the award from Ceferin after guiding the Lionesses to victory at the European Championship 2022 last year and the World Cup final this month.
The England boss took the time to fire at the Spanish Football Association and Rubiales at the UEFA ceremony, which was also held for the Champions League draw.
She said the ‘Kissgate’ scandal shows there is still a long way to go in women’s football and society
Wiegman praised Spain for playing ‘great football’ at the World Cup, saying they ‘deserved to be celebrated’
“Can I please send a message?” Wiegman said after asking the presenter the first questions about her successful year.
“Well, first of all thank you everyone for voting, especially of course colleagues, it is very special, I am very honoured.
Thanks also to everyone involved with the Lionesses, of course the team, the great team, the players and staff and the support of the FA.
“But it also feels a little different. We all know the problems surrounding the Spanish team. It really hurts me as a coach, as a mother of two daughters, as a wife and as a human being. It shows that the game has grown enormously, but there is also a long way to go. in women’s football and in society.
“I would like to dedicate this award to the Spanish team, the team that played such great football at the World Cup that everyone enjoyed.
“This team deserves to be celebrated and listened to. I’m going to give them a big round of applause and I hope you join in.’
Later on the podium was World Cup winner Aitana Bonmati, who collected her UEFA Women’s Player of the Year award before also discussing the Rubiales situation.
‘I appreciate Sarina Wiegman’s words,’ she began.
Aitana Bonmati thanked Wiegman as she accepted her Women’s Player of the Year award and said she stands by her colleagues, including Spanish teammate Jenni Hermoso
Wiegman dedicated the award to Spain after being handed the award by UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin
These are not good times for Spanish football. The World Cup has not been held as it should be and I would not like to turn the page.
“As a society, we should not allow abuse of power in working relationships and disrespect. I’m with my colleagues and with Jenni Hermoso.’
Mail Sport previously reported that FIFA will push for a ban on Rubiales from all football for 15 years after the disgraced Spanish FA president’s own federation dramatically withdrew their support for him.
Spain’s FA chiefs asked 46-year-old Rubiales to resign with immediate effect because his “unacceptable” behavior had “seriously damaged the image of Spanish football”.
The reversal followed a threat from FIFA to ban Spain’s national teams and elite clubs from international competition if the Spanish FA refused to accept Rubiales’ punishment.
Rubiales has been asked to resign by the Spanish Football Federation, which turned against their president
Rubiales was handed a 90-day interim suspension from FIFA last week and had previously retained the backing of the Spanish Football Federation, pending the outcome of an internal investigation into his extraordinary behavior in kissing Hermoso after Spain’s victory over England on the World Cup.
After a five-hour meeting on Monday, the Spanish Football Federation confirmed they had now asked Rubiales to resign.
Rubiales has so far defiantly refused to quit, and he sent FIFA a copy of newly released footage showing the women’s football team celebrating and joking about his infamous kiss.
Hermoso has denied claims that the kiss was consensual.