Barca’s Mapi Leon accused of inappropriately touching rival and asking her ‘do you have a d---?’
Credit: DAZN
Former Spain Women defender Mapi León has been accused of touching an opponent in the crotch area and asking: “Do you have a d---?”
The allegation against the Barcelona centre-back has emerged in the wake of Sunday’s Catalan derby amid clips posted on social media showing her clashing with Espanyol’s Daniela Caracas.
The alleged incident was condemned by Caracas’s club, who said they had offered her the services of their legal team if she wished to take action against León.
Espanyol said in a statement: “Espanyol wish to express total condemnation at events which took place during the game which we consider unacceptable and should not pass unnoticed.
“During the match, Barca player León, in a struggle with our player, Caracas, made a gesture which violated the privacy of said player.
“At the time, Caracas did not react because of the impact caused by the situation. Later, after assimilating what happened, she became aware of the seriousness of the gesture, but chose not to react angrily to avoid a disciplinary sanction and harming the team.”
Espanyol said the incident led to Caracas receiving insults on social media and that they were “concerned that, instead of focusing on the act itself, the media attention has been diverted to other issues unrelated to the seriousness of the action”.
León and Barca have yet to comment on Sunday’s alleged incident.
The clash between the two players was in the 15th minute of a match that was goalless at the time and which Barcelona went on to win 2-0 through late goals from Caroline Graham Hansen and Salma Paralluelo.
The incident occurred amid the ongoing trial of former Spanish football federation president Luis Rubiales for forcibly kissing Jenni Hermoso after Spain’s 2023 Women’s World Cup triumph.
León is a former team-mate of Hermoso’s for both club and country but has not played for the national team since 2022, when she was among 15 players to refuse call-ups after falling out with then head coach Jorge Vilda.
In an interview with RAC1 before the World Cup, Leon said she “has a way of life and values. I can’t go back if the situation hasn’t changed. There have to be changes. I’m not saying that no changes have happened, but I don’t see them”.
Colombia defender Caracas was at the centre of World Cup controversy herself after branding the Republic of Ireland team “little girls” and proclaiming: “Let them eat s---.”
That was after Ireland abandoned a pre-tournament friendly between the countries that left one of their players in hospital.
Colombia were beaten in the World Cup quarter-finals by England, who went on to lose to Spain.
