RFEF President apologises for harassment of RCD Mallorca fans in Saudi Arabia – ‘Money covers up everything’ | OneFootball

RFEF President Rafael Louzan has apologised for the treatment that RCD Mallorca fans suffered from Saudi Arabian fans during the Spanish Supercup. The Mallorca cohort, including the partners of the players, were left without security as they were harassed by the Saudi support.

Little was said about the issue from the Spanish Football Federation at the time, but appearing on Cadena Cope on Wednesday night, Louzan did apologise publicly for the events.

“I have been in contact with the head of Mallorca since the minute this happened. And I can only apologise to all the fans,” Louzan remarked.

“In sporting terms, Mallorca put in an exceptional performance and I only have words of gratitude towards this great club, so we are going to try to ensure that these events do not happen again.”

Louzan did not reveal what action they would be taken, and amid calls from Inaki Williams amongst others to take the competition away from Saudi Arabia, there appears to be little intention of doing so. Their current deal runs until 2029, and talks are already underway to extend their contract for the Spanish Supercup.

Indeed, it has even been suggested that the women’s Supercup could be held in Saudi Arabia, where women do not have equal rights as men. It has been suggested that should the RFEF try to do so, then some of Liga F’s stars would go on strike.

After Real Madrid’s win over RCD Mallorca, when the harassment occurred, various members of the traveling Bermellon group spoke about the events. Dominik Greif’s wife was amongst them, as was Dani Rodriguez’s partner Cristina Palavra. As recounted by Marca, Palavra has since replied to a column on their sight on Instagram with the following comments.

“When the kiss happened in women’s football, we acted forcefully against harassment. Now we see how championships like the Super Cup are taken to places where women have suffered harassment, limiting our freedom and safety.”

“We want to be able to attend these events in the future without fear, we want coherence and respect for everyone. Let everyone act the same as here, it seems that money covers up everything.”