888poker Terminates Relationship with Luis Suarez Following World Cup Biting Incident
On Wednesday, it became known that 888poker.com placed the sponsorship contract of football star Luis Suarez "under review" following an incident during a World Cup match in which the Uruguayan striker appeared to bite Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini. Now, two days later, 888poker has announced the termination of its relationship with Suarez.
"888poker signed Luis Suarez following a fantastic season for which his achievements were widely recognized," a statement on the company's website said. "Regrettably, following his actions during Uruguay’s World Cup match against Italy on Tuesday, 888poker has decided to terminate its relationship with Luis Suarez with immediate effect."
The decision came within 24 hours after FIFA announced its decision to ban Suarez from nine international matches and suspend him for four months from any football activity. The suspension will see Suarez miss the remainder of the World Cup and also a good chunk of the upcoming English Premier League (EPL) season.
This wouldn't be the first time Suarez has been involved in such an incident. In April of last year, he received a 10-match ban for biting Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic during an EPL match. In November of 2010, he was banned for seven matches by the Dutch FA for sinking his teeth into PSV Eindhoven's Otman Bakkal. Suarez also received an eight-match ban and a £40,000 fine for using racially abusive language toward Manchester United's Patrice Evra in 2011.
Keep following PokerNews for more updates on the story as it develops.
Lead photo courtesy of 888poker.com.
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