Majdi Al-Saidi-Tunisia
The involvement of a number of Tunisian football players in a robbery from a shoe and clothing store in Australia has shocked the sports community and triggered a wave of angry reactions in Tunisia.
A number of network activists circulated a video broadcast by an Australian television channel on Tuesday evening, showing some of Tunisia's players participating in the mini-soccer World Cup as they wandered inside a clothing store and sports equipment, before some of them burglary on shoes Then she shook it out.
The news report showed pictures of the arrest of the players involved in the robbery by the security guards in the shop, while a company official confirmed that "people wearing jackets bearing the name of Tunisia and the logo of the national football team stole 9 shoes, I spoke to them but they denied the theft before they returned 8 shoes After telling the police. "
While the Tunisian Football Federation kept silent on the details of the incident, a source close to the federation told Al Jazeera Net that the incident was a major shock in the circles of the game and the sports arena in general.
According to the source, the time difference between Tunisia and Australia was the main reason for the lack of information regarding the incident and statements from members of the Tunisian mission there to participate in the 2019 World Cup.
Later, Tunisian Football Federation (FTF) president Achraf Ben Salha announced his resignation after Tunisia withdrew from the final and lost to Mexico 7-0, but sources close to the federation confirmed that Ben Salha's resignation was due to the theft scandal involving him. Players.
"It is time to devote myself to my work and give new blood a chance to give up the presidency of the university and prepare for an electoral plenary session, while continuing my duties at the international level, with my best wishes for success," Ben Salha said on his official Facebook page.
In turn, Tunisian Minister of Youth and Sports Affairs, Sunni Sheikh described the incident as a resounding scandal for Tunisia, and confirmed that the ministry addressed the federation to obtain an official report on the charges of theft affecting the players of the national team.
"We are still traumatized by the incident, we are waiting for the team's return to Tunisia on Friday and we will open an investigation to uncover the circumstances of what happened and the parties responsible for this scandal," she told Shams FM radio late Tuesday. To go unnoticed. "
She pointed out that the players involved in the theft were released, according to the Tunisian Ambassador to Australia Reda Dridi, but at the same time criticized the officials of the Union for the failure and failure to frame the players to avoid the scandal, she said.
"The Ministry of Sports is considering sending an apology letter to the organizing committee of the mini-World Cup on the background of Tuesday's event if the theft is definitively proven," she said.
The robbery sparked controversy on social networking sites when a number of activists demanded that players who had fallen banned from theft be held accountable and expelled from the national team, while others blamed the Tunisian Football Federation for the game.
The Tunisian media, in turn, paid attention to the incident, and demanded that officials at the Ministry of Sports hold accountable anyone found guilty of insulting Tunisia's image abroad.According to reports, the incident is likely to have major repercussions on the future of the federation and on mini-football as a whole.
Mini-football is similar to futsal, is held in closed playgrounds, and is very popular in the United States, Canada and Mexico, and organizes its competitions with the participation of teams of six players.