As ambassadorial appointments go, Ryan Giggs being employed by a betting site to promote International Women’s Day is even more jaw-dropping than Peter Mandelson being made the UK’s envoy in the US.
In case you missed it, Giggs put on his Instagram page the weirdest, clanging, inappropriate piece of content that you are likely to have seen in a long while.
It is a 25-second clip for betting firm F168 of the former Manchester United player standing in front of what looks like an AI generated cartoon utopian meadow using his best monotone hostage voice to say “today we celebrate the strength, beauty and achievements of women everywhere”.
The problem here is the evidence that came out in court in a trial which ended just under three years ago, when he was up on charges of coercive and controlling behaviour and assault of his ex-partner and her sister. He was cleared of all charges, as his ex-partner did not want to give evidence.
But even though he walked free (figuratively – he was not there when the verdict was read out) in July 2023, during the trial, he showed himself to be an utterly unsuitable role model for F168, an Isle of Man-based gambling portal aimed at a Vietnamese audience, and their campaign to celebrate women.
He admitted under oath during his trial that he had sent message after message of abusive, aggressive, expletive-laden content to his ex-partner. He also said that he had never been faithful in any of his previous relationships, including his wife, who he cheated on with his sister-in-law.
One of his threats, via email, read: “I am so f**king mad right now I am scaring myself because I could do anything.” By “anything”, one presumes he didn’t mean reading off a cue card for money: “To all the amazing women in our community, keep shining and inspiring us all.”
Shining and inspiring. Well now. At this juncture, it is worth returning to Manchester Crown Court, and the question one of the jurors asked the court near the beginning of Giggs’ trial: “What is gaslighting?”
Look, we know people can change. Maybe Giggs really has turned over a new leaf and is ready to walk the earth as an ally for women, not as an entitled 52-year-old former footballer, desperate to cling on to the prestige, fame power and attention that comes with playing for a championship-winning football club.
Maybe he really did mean it when he began his monologue, with: “Hello, everyone, I am Ryan Giggs, brand ambassador for F168. Happy Women’s Day.” He certainly meant it when he ended it with: “Don’t forget to have some fun and games at F168.”
So perhaps this is the first step to redemption for Giggs. Admittedly a moral vacuum such as a tax-exile gambling company is an odd place to start clawing back a reputation, but at least it is a start.
Maybe an apology, some education or a donation to a charity would be more appropriate. But F168 it is. You never know, F168 one day, the Sky Sports Super Sunday sofa the next. Fellow former Manchester United idol George Best, who also got into spots of bother with women, was a former Sky employee, so there is hope for Giggs yet.
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But hang on a minute. This creepy advert enticing us to gamble (via a VPN, as the site is not accessible in the UK) will not make us forget that Giggs admitted in court that his email threat detailed above was not idle.
The prosecuting lawyer, Peter Knight KC, followed up Giggs’ admission with: “What were you suggesting you could do?” Giggs just said: “I don’t know.”
Maybe he would give the same answer if we asked why the hell he put his name to such a tone-deaf attempt at a reinvention.
from Football - The i Paper https://ift.tt/yPHlOgG
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