Barcelona's Leon receives two-match ban for inappropriate touch
Soccer Football - Women's Champions League - Group D - Manchester City v FC Barcelona - Manchester City Academy Stadium, Manchester, Britain - October 9, 2024 FC Barcelona's Mapi Leon Action Images via Reuters/Lee Smith/ File Photo
Barcelona defender Mapi Leon has been handed a two-match ban by Liga F for inappropriately touching Espanyol defender Daniela Caracas during the Catalan derby in February, the BBC reported on Wednesday.
Leon was accused of "violating Caracas' intimacy" on Feb. 10 after appearing to inappropriately touch the Espanyol defender in the groin area while saying something to her as they lined up inside the box for a set piece, a mere 15 minutes after kickoff.
Espanyol expressed their "total discontent and condemnation" of Leon's actions and backed the Colombian defender.
Liga F did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
The 29-year-old has denied the allegations, saying there was "no contact with her private parts".
"At no time did I, nor was it my intention, infringe upon the intimacy of my fellow professional Daniela Caracas," she added.
Leon served the first match ban last weekend against Atletico Madrid and will be absent from Barcelona's upcoming league fixture against Sevilla.
Barcelona, who are four points clear of the second-placed Real Madrid, failed with an appeal over the suspension.
