Spanish Referee Allegedly Asks Female Player to Go Out with Him During Game

Sporting de Huelva's Elena Pavel has claimed that a referee invited her on a date in the middle of a game.

During Huelva's recent match at Santa Teresa in Spain's Primera Division, referee Santiago Quijada Alcon is said to have asked the 31-year-old defender to go for coffee. The Sun reports:

"

The whistler allegedly told the shocked Romanian: "Hey brown-hair, let's get coffee this afternoon." ...

She said: "I've stopped believing in football, in fair play.

"I feel helpless, humiliated. In the many years I've been playing football I've never felt so ashamed.

"Better stick to blowing your whistle."

"

Pavel rebuffed the offer and subsequently saw two of her teammates sent off and a clear penalty opportunity denied in what resulted in a 3-2 loss.

According to Marca (h/t Sports Illustrated), the Romanian defender will not make a formal complaint because "it's her word against his."

[The Sun, Sports Illustrated]