Leila Pereira, Palmeiras president, criticized the football community’s silence on Robinho and Dani Alves’ rape convictions. “Nobody says anything, but I, as a woman here at the head of the delegation, have to take a stand on the cases of Robinho and Daniel Alves,” she said to Brazil’s UOL news site.
Pereira pointed out how important it is of speaking out, particularly in Alves’ case where he secured his freedom through payment, saying, “It’s a slap in the face for all of us women… Each case of impunity is the seed of the next crime.”
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In London for friendly matches against England and Spain, Pereira noted the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) and former teammates’ silence on the convictions of both players, who represented Brazil internationally.
A Brasilia court confirmed Robinho must serve a nine-year sentence in Brazil for a 2013 gang rape in Milan. Brazil’s policy against extraditing its nationals led Italy to request his sentence be served domestically. Robinho is appealing for a delay in his sentence start.
Similarly, a Spanish court allowed Alves’ release from jail on a one-million-euro bail pending his appeal against a four-and-a-half-year sentence for raping a woman in a Barcelona nightclub in 2022. This decision was criticized as “justice for the rich” by the victim’s lawyer.
