Marc Overmars harassed Ajax staff during his tenure as sporting director of the club from 2012 to 2022.

Former Dutch player Marc Overmars, who also had stints at Barcelona and Arsenal, has been handed a worldwide suspension on Wednesday. The former Netherlands midfielder has been punished for sending sexual messages to Ajax staff, while serving as the club’s sporting director between 2012 and 2022.

50-year-old Overmars had already been internally punished by the Dutch Football Federation last year. Today, the federation extended his suspension to a global level for a period of one year. ‘We have the duty to report this sanction to the FIFA disciplinary committee, which has decided to take over the suspension starting from November 16, 2023”, stated the federation.

In February 2022, Overmars resigned from Ajax and admitted to having displayed ‘inappropriate behavior’ at the Amsterdam club. The former player had sent sexual messages and photographs to several women working at the club.

Last year, an independent court suspended Overmars from any football-related activities for two years. Subsequently, the Dutch Federation requested FIFA to make the punishment have worldwide scope. This was because the former player was hired in 2022 to work as a technical director for the Belgian team Royal Antwerp.

The player, who can still appeal to FIFA against the decision, has not made any public statement, just like the Belgian club, which may dismiss the executive in the coming days.

Overmars was considered one of the best players of his generation. In the 90s, he shone with the jerseys of Ajax and Arsenal. In the early 2000s, he strengthened Barcelona. In his resume, he has titles from the Champions League, the English Premier League, and the FA Cup. He represented the Dutch national team in the 1994 and 1998 World Cups.