Editors’ note: This story contains accounts of domestic violence. If you or someone you know is a survivor of domestic abuse, contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 or at https://www.thehotline.org/.
On trial for assault against his ex-girlfriend, former Manchester United star Ryan Giggs admitted to infidelity but denied allegations of abuse and assault.
The Welsh international is accused of assaulting and causing bodily harm to Kate Greville and was also charged with assaulting Greville’s sister during an incident at his Manchester home in November 2020. Giggs is also alleged to have thrown Greville naked into a hotel hallway in Dubai in 2017. Giggs, 48, has denied all charges and accusations.
Giving testimony for the first time in the trial, Giggs denied intentionally headbutting Greville and elbowing her sister, saying, “During this scuffle my head clashed with hers.”
“I am not sure if it was the face or head but I am sure it was not deliberate,” Giggs said, per The Guardian.
When asked whether he had lied to Greville and former partners about infidelity, Giggs replied: “Yes. More than once. Many times.” He also said his reputation as a “love-cheat” was warranted.
At the start of the trial, the prosecution portrayed Giggs as someone who used coercive behavior against his ex-girlfriend.
“In the privacy of his own personal life at home or behind closed doors, there was, we say the facts reveal, a much uglier and more sinister side to his character,” prosecutor Peter Wright said, per the Associated Press. “This was a private life that involved a litany of abuse, both physical and psychological, of a woman he professed to love.”
Giggs stepped down as the manager of Wales ahead of the trial, claiming that he didn’t want to destabilize the country’s preparations for the World Cup.
