ENGLAND - With his 'family-man-persona' tarnished, England's most decorated star, Ryan Giggs has strained ties with his brother Rhodri Giggs, 34.
Giggs, 37, allegedly had an eight-year-affair with his sister-in-law, Natasha Giggs.
Natasha outed their illicit trysts on Sunday to the English tabloids and has supposedly left her husband, and flown to Spain in the midst of the media furore.
British tabloid The Sun reported that a source close to the two brothers had told them that a confrontation had taken place.
Ryan had told his younger brother that Natasha had made up the whole affair, to which the younger brother snapped back labelling his brother 'pathetic' and 'a liar'.
Ryan's marriage is already on the rocks from the recent revelations of his affair with Big Brother star, Imogen Thomas. The strained marriage will be tested further with these fresh claims.
| Imogen Thomas revealed as Giggsy's lover Click on thumbnail to view (Photos: AFP, Reuters, Facebook, Internet) | ||||
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However a source also told The Sun that Stacey, Ryan's wife had told Rhodri that she believes that Natasha's accusations were untrue.
Rhodri meanwhile, has gone to Spain to recover from the blow and was spotted leaving the country without his wedding ring, leading to speculation that his marriage to Natasha has come to an end.
Another British tabloid, The Daily Mail, also reported that Natasha's publicist Max Clifford (also the publicist for Imogen Thomas) told ITV's This Morning that 'a lot more' revelations were to come, and she is understood to have signed a six-figure tabloid deal.
Meanwhile, Ryan Giggs stands to lose out on his high-paying endorsements, say some marketing experts.
Unlike serial cheaters Tiger Woods and Wayne Rooney, Giggs' sporting career is coming to end soon. Hence, there is little or no time left for him to resurrect his former image of a family man that first attracted numerous endorsement deals from Swiss watch firms Patek Philippe and Cyma, car manufacturer Citroen and phone company Saudi Telecom.
Nigel Currie from Brand Rapport said that the latest revelations have been rather damaging for the Manchester United star who received his OBE (Order of the British Empire) for his service to football in 2007.
