After Uruguay football star Luis Suarez (pictured) allegedly bit Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini last week during the World Cup in Brazil, which entered its knockout stage on Saturday, FIFA handed down a punishment of nine Uruguayan matches and four months of play along with a fine of over $100,000. Suarez was also a brand ambassador of 888 Poker, and when we say, “he was,” we mean 888 severed ties with the football player late last week.

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The “bite heard round the world” took place last Tuesday in Natal, Brazil and it took 888 all of a few days to distance itself from the “Twilight”-like saga. 888 commented on Friday, “888 Poker signed Luis Suarez following a fantastic season for which his achievements were widely recognized. Regrettably, following his actions during Uruguay’s World Cup match against Italy on Tuesday, 888 Poker has decided to terminate its relationship with Luis Suarez with immediate effect.”

According to the New York Daily News, Suarez argued that rather than intentionally biting an opponent, he merely fell awkwardly, writing in a letter last Wednesday, “In no way it happened how you have described, as a bite or intent to bite. After the impact… I lost my balance, making my body unstable and falling on top of my opponent. At that moment, I hit my face against the player, leaving a small bruise on my cheek and a strong pain in my teeth.”

Interestingly, Chiellini called the punishment handed down “excessive” and argued, “I sincerely hope he will be allowed to stay close to his teammates during the games because such a ban is really alienating for a player.”

In PocketFives’ original article, we pointed out that it wasn’t Suarez’s first run-in involving biting: “In 2010 while playing for AFC Ajax in the Dutch Eredivisie, Suarez received a seven-match ban for biting PSV Eindhoven’s Otman Bakkal… In 2013, he received a 10-match ban in the English Premier League for biting Chelsea’s Branislav Ivanovic.”

Tweets and a blog announcing Suarez’s arrival to 888 Poker, which happened in mid-May, have been removed.

Suarez is also a brand ambassador for the shoe company Adidas, which yanked a poster on Copacabana of the football player with his mouth open wide (pictured). Below his likeness was a caption that translated to “all or nothing.” Visitors and locals alike were posing with the poster as if Suarez were biting them.

Adidas noted, “Adidas certainly does not condone Luis Suarez’s recent behavior and we will again be reminding him of the high standards we expect from our players. We have no plan to use Suarez for any additional marketing activities during the 2014 FIFA World Cup.”

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