ARGENTINE footballer Sergio Lopez has been fined £1,000 … for KISSING the ball during a match.
The midfielder, 31, plays for Ecuador top-flight club SD Aucas.
SD Aucas Sergio Lopez was fined £1,000 for KISSING the ball after his side’s victory over Macara
He helped the Quito side to a 1-0 win over rivals Macara last Friday.
However Lopez broke strict local anti-coronavirus rules when picking up the ball and giving it a smacker to celebrate the victory.
Ecuador’s FA quickly cracked down on the errant player and fined him 1,200 dollars – the equivalent of a grand.
Five other footballers were previously fined similar sums for swapping shirts after matches.
Covid-19 has ravaged the South American country, accounting for 6,600 deaths.
It is suspected to be the cause of a further 3,700 fatalities.
Over 114,000 cases of the pandemic have been reported in the nation of 17 million people.
Two Ecuadorian football clubs have also been fined.
Liga de Portoviejo were sanctioned for failing to provide a first-aid kit at a match.
Meanwhile the FA punished Guayaquil-based Barcelona for not providing hand sanitiser.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
