March 11 – Marta Cox, the Panamanian striker fat-shamed by her federation president Manuel Arias, said that she will refuse to play for Panama if she hears further comments similar to his again.
Arias, angry that Cox expressed her opinion on the development of the game in Panama, turned the debate personal, saying: “Marta Cox stopped to talk about our league. She’s out of shape, she’s fat, she couldn’t move on the pitch.”
Responding via her agency, The Marketing Jersey, she posted a statement on X saying: “We are the first to recognise that we were not up to par in the tournament, but that same introspection must go beyond just the players. Personally, I believe that there were words used to describe me that certainly hurt me and that were unexpected.
“I take advantage of this space to highlight that, if these types of situations become a constant, I will not return to defend the colors of the Panama national team. My intention was to express myself objectively and sincerely about the realities that exist in the Panamanian football system, because although there have been levels of progress, there are issues that need to be improved.”
Cox hit the headlines at the 2023 World Cup after she scored one of the goals of the tournament against France with a long range free kick. She plays her club football in Mexico at Xolos de Tijuana.
At the W Gold Cup Panama disappointed, exiting at the group stage after defeats to Brazil, Colombia and Puerto Rico.
Cox’s concern was that there weren’t enough adequate facilities in Panama to develop elite players who can compete on the international stage. Arais took offence and made his comments that were subsequently condemned by the Panamanian players’ union.
For her part Cox said she wasn’t looking for Arias’ resignation, but called on “authorities that have responsibility for our football to help us continue growing so that new generations find a better future.”
It is a magnanimous position to take compared, for example, to the outrage and action taken in Spain over the behaviour of the disgraced former president Luis Rubiales and his allies in the Jenifer Hermosot scandal.
The Panamanian Football Federation hasn’t apologisd for Arias’ comments, but in a statement focussed on the development that is taking place in the country. “We regret the unfortunate term used by our president Manuel Arias in a local press conference,” said the statement. “He has promised that it will not happen again… we know that there is still a lot more work to do and from our position as a federation, we will continue working together with the different actors that make up our football and thus continue on this path of taking women’s football to the place it deserves to be.”
Arais is likely to face an investigation for his comments by football’s governing bodies who have increasingly acted in similar cases.
Part of that future depends on football’s leaders to show respect and commitment to those playing the game and to its principles of equality. Arias, who has been a divisive and controversial figure with rumours growing over his personal spending on the federation’s budget since taking the Panamanian presidency, is now walking a tightrope.
Panama is building a new high-performance centre in Burunga, in the city of Arraijan, just west of Panama City. Arias said when the project launched, using FIFA’s grant aid, that the first two pitches will be ready by October or November and the main building by May 2024.
A measure of Arias’ presidency will be whether this project is completed on time and on budget.
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