Jury fails to reach verdict in Ryan Giggs assault trial

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – A UK judge on Wednesday discharged the jury in the domestic violence case against former Manchester United winger Ryan Giggs, after it failed to reach a verdict despite days of deliberations.

The jury of seven women and four men, which earlier this week had been given the option of delivering a majority verdict, could not reach a decision after more than 20 hours of consideration.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), which oversees prosecutions in England and Wales, must now decide whether to retry the case following a four-week trial. 

Its lawyers will consider the public interest of a retrial of Giggs, 48, who until recently served as coach of the Wales national team, which would only take place many months from now.

He had denied three counts of controlling and coercive behaviour against his former girlfriend Kate Greville as well as assaulting her and her younger sister.

Prosecutors alleged that the ex-star headbutted Greville in the face as she tried to end their relationship, and had subjected her to a “litany of abuse, both physical and psychological”.

Former Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson was among those to give evidence in the case, which also saw Giggs take the stand and admit to being unfaithful in all his past romantic relationships but deny ever being violent.

Giggs resigned as the Wales manager in June, after being on leave since his arrest. 

He said he did not want “continued interest around this case” to affect the team as it prepares for this year’s World Cup in Qatar.

He remains on conditional bail until a further hearing in the case on September 7, and has said he looks forward to “clearing my name”. 

Giggs exploded onto the scene as a teenager in the mid-1990s. He ended his career at Old Trafford as the most-decorated player in English football history. 

As a player, he made a club-record 963 appearances over 23 years for Manchester United, winning 13 Premier League titles and two Champions League trophies.

He began his coaching career at Old Trafford, taking temporary charge at the end of the 2013-14 season after David Moyes was sacked. Giggs then worked as an assistant to Louis van Gaal for two years. 

Giggs was appointed Wales boss in January 2018 and helped them secure qualification for Euro 2020, their only major tournament appearance since the 1958 World Cup. 

He missed the chance to lead them to last year’s European Championships after being placed on leave by the Welsh FA since November 2020.

He finally resigned from that role in June after Wales qualified for the World Cup under the stewardship of his former assistant Rob Page.