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U.S. court to hear arguments over Ronaldo rape case settlement

A U.S. appeals court plans to hear Wednesday from lawyers trying to revive a woman’s bid to force Cristiano Ronaldo to pay millions more than the $375,000 in hush money he paid her after she claimed he raped her in Las Vegas in 2009.

An attorney for the woman is asking the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to overturn the dismissal of the case in June 2022 and reopen the civil lawsuit she first filed in Nevada in 2018.

The appeal argues the federal court judge in Nevada erred in repeatedly rejecting the woman’s attempts to unseal and include as evidence the confidentiality agreement she signed in 2010 in accepting payments from Ronaldo.

A three-judge panel of the San Francisco-based appellate court isn’t expected to issue an immediate ruling after it’s scheduled to question attorneys for Ronaldo and his accuser, Kathryn Mayorga, during oral arguments Wednesday at a special sitting at the law school on the campus of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Mayorga gave consent through her lawyers, including Leslie Mark Stovall, to make her name public.

Ronaldo is one of the most recognizable and richest athletes in the world. He is the captain of Portugal’s national soccer team and has played for the Spanish team Real Madrid, Manchester United in England and the Italian club Juventus. He joined Saudi Arabian club Al Nassr at the start of the year after ending his second stint at Manchester United.

Las Vegas police reopened a rape investigation after Mayorga’s lawsuit was filed, but Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson decided in 2019 not to pursue criminal charges. He said too much time had passed and evidence failed to show that Mayorga’s accusation could be proved to a jury.

Mayorga, a former teacher and model from the Las Vegas area, was 25 when she met Ronaldo at a nightclub in 2009 and went with him and other people to his hotel suite. She alleges in her lawsuit filed almost a decade later that Ronaldo, then 24, sexually assaulted her in a bedroom. Ronaldo, through his lawyers, maintained the sex was consensual. The two reached a confidentiality agreement in 2010 under which Stovall acknowledged that Mayorga received $375,000.

In dismissing the case last year, U.S. District Judge Jennifer Dorsey in Las Vegas took the unusual step of levying a $335,000 fine against Mayorga’s lead lawyer, Stovall, for acting in “bad faith” in filing the case on his client’s behalf. Stovall’s appeal on Mayorga’s behalf, filed in March calls Dorsey’s ruling “a manifest abuse of discretion,” seeks to open the records and revive the case.

It alleges Mayorga wasn’t bound by the confidentiality agreement because Ronaldo or his associates violated it before a German news outlet, Der Spiegel, published an article in April 2017 titled “Cristiano Ronaldo’s Secret” based on documents obtained from what court filings called “whistleblower portal Football Leaks.” Ronaldo’s lawyers argued — and the judge agreed — the “Football Leaks” documents and the confidentiality agreement are the product of privileged attorney-client discussions, there is no guarantee they are authentic and can’t be considered as evidence.

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King Ademola Lookman Brings Out His Love

Like his father opened up, Ademola Lookman is essentially a private person, who prefers to do his stuff without all the media blitz.

But on one of his biggest days, when he was crowned Africa’s best player, he could not but make the first public appearance with the woman in his life – Jayda Love.

‘Adebobo’ would even steal a moment on his big night to kiss his American beau.

The 27-year-old Super Eagles star is still single.

Rumours of this romance first surfaced in the summer when the couple appeared to have spent the holidays together.

This was after ‘Mola’ scored his unforgettable hat-trick for Atalanta to win the UEFA Europa League in super style.

Jayda, an Information Technology specialist is based in Dallas, Texas, graduated from the University of Oklahoma in 2021 with a degree in public relations.

She follows Ademola Lookman and his foundation on social media.

She is also known to have visited him at his Italian base.

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FIFA Rankings: Nigeria’s Super Eagles End 2024 Ahead Of Ghana, South Africa, Cameroon

Nigeria’s Super Eagles have ended 2024 ranked as Africa’s fifth-best team in FIFA’s latest global standings, released Thursday morning, Soccernet.ng reports.

Despite a challenging end to the year that saw the team drop eight places to 44th globally, the Super Eagles still managed to hold their own against eternal continental rivals like South Africa, Cameroon, and Ghana.

This year’s ranking represents a mixed bag for Nigeria. While the team retained its fifth spot in Africa, their decline in global rankings was driven by underwhelming performances in key fixtures.

Most notably, the Super Eagles struggled during the final rounds of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers, securing just a solitary point in lackluster outings against the Benin Republic and Rwanda.

Nigeria were forced to a scored draw by the Cheetahs in Abidjan only for Samuel Chukwueze’s excellent strike to end up as consolation in a 2-1 home defeat to the Wasps.

Looking at year-to-year standings, at this time in 2023, Nigeria’s Super Eagles were ranked 42nd in the world but sixth on the continent.

Elsewhere, South Africa’s Bafana Bafana showed marked improvement, climbing th

Cameroon and Ghana, however, endured disappointing campaigns. Ghana’s Black Stars finished the year ranked 77th, a stark reminder of the ongoing struggles within the Black Stars setup.

At the continental summit, Morocco retained their status as the continent’s best, finishing as Africa’s top-ranked team in 14th place globally.

Senegal (17th), Egypt (33rd), and Algeria (37th) rounded out the top four, with Côte d’Ivoire, Cameroon, Mali, Tunisia, and South Africa completing the top 10.

Globally, Argentina retained their position as FIFA’s top-ranked team, followed by France, Spain, England, and Brazil.

With 1,181 international matches played across the calendar year, the rankings reflected consistent dominance from the world’s elite teams.

As Nigeria enter 2025, all eyes will be on the Super Eagles to reignite their competitive spark, with the World Cup qualifiers returning in the first quarter of the year.

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Mbappé: Would Have Been ‘Fun’ To Play With Cristiano Ronaldo

Kylian Mbappé has said he wishes he could have played with Real Madrid legend Cristiano Ronaldo, the club’s all-time leading scorer.

The France international has been a teammate of other football icons but would have relished playing alongside Ronaldo, the five-time Ballon d’Or winner and Portugal captain.

“I’ve played with great players: Lionel Messi, Neymar, [Antoine] Griezmann, [Paul] Pogba, [Karim] Benzema…” Mbappé told BeINsports.

“It would have been fun to play with Cristiano Ronaldo — it’s going to be very difficult now — but I was lucky enough to play against him, a legend of the sport.”

Ronaldo, 39, left the Spanish giants in 2018 now plays for Saudi Pro-League side Al Nassr.

Mbappé helped Madrid win the Intercontinental Cup on Wednesday, his second title since joining the Spanish giants in the summer after his contract with Paris Saint-Germain expired.

Speaking to young people with disabilities as part of the BeUNITED program, Mbappe, 25, said he would have never left Paris Saint-Germain had it not been to join Madrid.

“I went to the biggest club in the world,” the 2018 World Cup winner said.

“I have always said that it was the only club I would have left PSG for. If I hadn’t been able to go to Madrid, I would have stayed at PSG all my life.”

Although Mbappé has been prolific for Madrid so far, he has faced criticism for his all-round performances with the team having suffered some high-profile defeats earlier in the season.

“Since I was 14, everyone told me I was going to be great,” Mbappé said.

“But when you’re big, sometimes you feel small…At first I was too hungry and it played tricks on me because I was impatient. But I have passion and this competitive side.

“My dream now is to win trophies with my team, not individual awards. What great title is left for me? The Champions League, but I’m in the best club in the world for that.”