PARIS (AP) — Lyon coach Paulo Fonseca has been banned from the touchline at games for nine months for aggressively confronting the referee at a French league game.
Fonseca also is banned from the locker room and access to players at games until Sept. 15, the French league said in a disciplinary ruling on Wednesday.
The ban applies just to domestic games and can let Fonseca work on Thursday in the UEFA-organized Europa League. Lyon plays a first-leg game of the round of 16 in Romania against FCSB.
Fonseca angrily confronted referee Benoît Millot on Sunday about a potential penalty for Brest deep in stoppage time as Lyon led 2-1.
After being shown a card, Fonseca approached the referee and leaned in very close to his face before being pushed away by Lyon captain Corentin Tolisso. Fonseca tried to confront the referee a second time and was restrained by a couple of Lyon players.
It was Fonseca’s fifth game in charge of Lyon since being hired in January by the club’s American owner John Textor. The Portuguese coach was fired by AC Milan in December after just six months in charge.
Textor gave his backing to Fonesca.
“I stand with you today, and always,” he posted on Instagram. “You made a mistake. Your apology was sincere and your punishment is clearly too severe. You are the right man for OL (Lyon) and we shall persevere.”
Lyon said on Wednesday it regretted Fonseca was judged for his emotional reaction and he had no intent to physically attack the referee. The club is considering an appeal and noted the context of criticism of refereeing in French soccer.
“The club deplores that its coach was not judged on his actions alone, an emotional reaction without any clear intention of physically attacking the referee,” Lyon said. “(The punishment) seems to be dictated by a damaging context affecting French refereeing.”
Marseille president Pablo Longoria was given a 15-match ban last week after he accused French referees of “ true corruption."
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Lyon's head coach Paulo Fonseca gives instructions to his players during the French League One soccer match between Lyon and Paris Saint-Germain at the Groupama stadium, outside Lyon, France, Sunday, Feb. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Laurent Cipriani)
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo blocked a shot by LeBron James and stole the ball from him on consecutive possessions in the final minute, and the Milwaukee Bucks blew a fourth-quarter lead before rallying for a 105-101 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday night.
Kevin Porter Jr. scored 22 points, and he hit two free throws to break a tie after Antetokounmpo blocked a driving layup attempt by James with 39 seconds left.
Antetokounmpo then knocked the ball out of James' hands from behind with 2 seconds left, and Porter hit two more free throws to seal Milwaukee's fifth win in seven games — its first over a team with a winning record since Dec. 11. Antetokounmpo finished with 21 points in his lowest-scoring effort since returning from his right calf strain.
Luka Doncic had 24 points and nine assists on 8-of-25 shooting for the Lakers. He had his lowest-scoring performance since Christmas, and he fouled out on Porter's 3-point attempt with 16.2 seconds to play.
James had 26 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds, but Antetokoumpo got the best of the top scorer in NBA history at crunch time. Los Angeles has lost six of 10.
Milwaukee surged to a double-digit lead in the first half even with Antetokounmpo on a minutes restriction in his injury return. Doncic scored 12 points in the third quarter but also committed four fouls in the period, including his fifth of the game.
Los Angeles abruptly erased its deficit by going on a 17-4 run to open the fourth, with James putting the Lakers ahead when he stole the ball from Antetokounmpo for a layup with 6:02 left. Milwaukee missed nine of its first 12 shots in the period, but Porter's layup tied it with two minutes left.
Lakers starters Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura remain sidelined by injury, but Hachimura (calf) might return early next week from his six-game absence, coach JJ Redick said.
Bucks: At Denver on Sunday.
Lakers: At Sacramento on Monday.
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA
Los Angeles Lakers guard Marcus Smart, left, tries to shoot as Milwaukee Bucks guard Gary Trent Jr. defends during the first half of an NBA basketball game Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic, left, and Milwaukee Bucks guard Kevin Porter Jr. go after a loose ball during the first half of an NBA basketball game Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
