Argentinian footballer arrested for punching female referee to the floor after she sent him off for insulting her
A football player from Argentina was detained after punching a female referee to the ground after she had dismissed him for insulting her.
After Dalma Cortadi red-carded Cristian Tirone, he was seen on camera approaching her and punching her in the head as she wrote his name down on her notepad.
The third division footballer was given a red card by Dalma moments earlier for verbally abusing her after she showed him the card for intentionally kicking the ball away. Dalma admitted that she was “a little dazed” after the attack.
Argentinian footballer arrested for punching female referee to the floor after she sent him off for insulting her (video)
After a male linesman shoved Tirone away and police raced onto the field to arrest him after a struggle, the shocked referee rose to her feet.
After being taken to the hospital, she was later released after a checkup. The game was stopped.
The female referee later refused to make it an issue of gender and misogyny, adding that it did not matter if she was a man or a woman.
She said after the attack: ‘I’m a little dazed after what happened but otherwise okay and I’m receiving the support of colleagues and family.
Argentinian footballer arrested for punching female referee to the floor after she sent him off for insulting her (video)
‘Doctors have ordered me to rest.
‘The blow was to my neck, with a closed fist, and I hurt my elbow when I hit the ground.
‘I had red-carded Tirone because he insulted me and that’s when he attacked me.
‘I wasn’t expecting it because I was writing his name down when I felt the blow. I fell to the ground and can’t remember anything else after that.
The ref, who confirmed she was pressing charges, added: ‘I’m still coming to terms with what happened. All I want is justice to be done.
‘Gender and whether this was done to a man or a woman doesn’t matter here.
‘What matters is that there is not this level of aggression in football or anywhere else.
‘People like this man have no place in football. I came out of this okay but it could have been a lot worse.’
Regional football chiefs were due to meet today to decide how to punish Tirone, with a life ban being mooted as the most likely possibility.
Eduardo Aparicio, head of the Agency for the Prevention of Violence in Sport, said he had spoken to the referee and assured her ‘the full weight of the law’ would fall on Tirone.