Rafael Marquez

2018 World Cup: Here’s why Mexico captain Rafael Marquez is banned from all sponsors

One of the most bizarre World Cup situations. He can’t even win Man of The Match…

Rafael Marquez

Rafael Marquez has already cemented his name as a Mexican football legend. The 2018 World Cup saw him make history as he became the first player to captain his country in five different World Cups. For this one, though, he is facing all kinds of restrictions.

Rafael Marquez: Banned from Mexico’s sponsors

Marquez has strong links to the Mexican drug cartel, the New York Times reported.

These links are so strong, in fact, that the United States Treasury Department believes that he helped launder money for the cartels. The US Treasury has therefore blacklisted him.

In short, this means that American companies cannot be associated with him at all.

With sponsors all over everything at these big tournaments and global events, Marquez is not wearing sponsored gear in training. The team captain can’t even drink out of the same water bottles as his teammates.

Things got even more complicated due to Marquez’s situation as Fifa had to send Mexico the $1.5m World Cup preparation fee via banks that did not have ties to the USA.

At this World Cup, the Man of The Match awards are presented by Budweiser, an American beer company. Yip, you guessed right, the US ban means he cant win the award, no matter how well he plays in a game.

The award’s connection with alcohol has also not done wonders for Muslim players at the tournament. Egyptian goalkeeper Mohamed El-Shenawy turned down his award after his incredible performance against Uruguay.

Mexico take on Heung Min Son and the rest of South Korea at 17:00 on Saturday. A win will see them through to the knockouts.

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