The 29-year-old was detained on Friday after being seen slapping his wife in the vicinity of a well-known mall in Hérault, France. He allegedly saw his wife Imane smoking, despite telling Haouas she had stopped, and the two apparently got into a fight. The Montpellier player made the excuse, “She has the right to smoke, but the issue is that she lied to me,” in an attempt to defend his behavior.
“I told myself that if she could lie about cigarettes, then she could lie about other things too.” I made up stories and felt envious. He said, “I was out of control and furious.” Since the event, Haouas has been detained. On Tuesday, he appeared in an accelerated court proceeding where he was found guilty.
According to French reports, Haouas has an adjustable sentence, so he might still be able to escape going to jail. The French Rugby Federation responded to the incident by stating that Houas’ actions were “illegal and incompatible with the representation of our country at the international level.”
In addition, the 29-year-old’s previously planned summer transfer from Montpellier to Clermont has been canceled. Howas’ actions were denounced by Clermont in a statement, which insisted that he had “completely breached our identity” and would no again be permitted to fly the team’s flag on the field.
On the France international’s field, similar contentious incidents have occurred, including a four-week suspension for headbutting Scotland international Ben White during the Six Nations. At Murrayfield in 2020, he was also dismissed for assaulting forward Jamie Ritchie.
For his involvement in a series of burglaries in 2014, Haouas received an 18-month probationary term last year. The 29-year-old has played 16 times for France, but his conduct off the field could cost him further victories.