SPORTS BRIEFS

The Kansas City Chiefs on Wednesday signed former Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker after he served a 10-game suspension for allegations of sexual misconduct made by multiple women. Tucker, 36, has not played in the league since January last year, when allegations made against him by 16 massage therapists in the Baltimore area first emerged. The Super Bowl-winning kicker was accused of acting inappropriately during treatments, including exposing his genitals and brushing some of the therapists’ thighs with his fingers. He was released by the Ravens in May last year, before the NFL issued him a 10-game suspension the following month. Asked what message Tucker’s signing would send to female Chiefs fans, Kansas City head coach Andy Reid said the kicker had served a suspension. “He’s done his suspension, you know, took care of that business there, but I’ll leave it at that for you,” Reid said.

Then-Baltimore Ravens Kicker Justin Tucker looks on from the sideline during their game against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Baltimore, Maryland, on Nov. 4, 2018.

Photo: AFP

SOCCER

Neymar suspended

Santos captain Neymar has been handed a two-match suspension for covering his mouth while arguing with an opponent during Saturday’s 1-1 Brazilian Serie A draw with Bahia, the Brazilian Superior Court of Sports Justice said on Wednesday. The 34-year-old was sent off following an altercation with Bahia midfielder Rodrigo Nestor, and the sports tribunal found him guilty of violating the Vinicius Jr rule that forbids players from covering their mouths during on-field confrontations. The court cited the referee’s report as saying that Neymar, after being sent off, ran toward the visitors’ bench to confront his opponent and had to be restrained by teammates. He was already banned from Wednesday’s match after accumulating three yellow cards.

FOOTBALL

Player forced to divest

Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley said he was forced to divest his equity stake in Polymarket because of league rules that ban NFL players from investing in or endorsing gambling or prediction-market companies. Barkley told Front Office Sports that any involvement with prediction markets is no longer allowed by the NFL. “I was in it before, but no bueno,” he told Front Office Sports in a story published on Wednesday. The NBA, MLB, NHL and MLS all have deals with either Kalshi or Polymarket or both. Philadelphia 76ers star LeBron James has a reported US$15 million per year salary as a paid endorser for Polymarket.

SOCCER

Fan jailed for threats

An Argentine court on Wednesday jailed a soccer supporter for seven-and-a-half years for threatening Angel Di Maria in 2024 in a bid to stop the FIFA World Cup winner returning to Argentina to play at a rival club at the end of his career. A court in Rosario found Sergio Di Vanni, 45, guilty of ordering acts of intimidation against Di Maria’s family. Di Maria was playing for SL Benfica at the time, but was considering a return to his boyhood club Rosario Central, a move he eventually completed last year. The threats included firing gunshots near a gated community where he owned property and the dumping of a pig’s head bearing a bullet wound outside an estate agency run by his sister, alongside a message threatening his daughter.