The sporting world has reacted to Johnny Depp winning his televised defamation case against Amber Heard.
The jury was unanimously in favour of Johnny Depp, finding that what Amber Heard wrote in her op-ed piece for The Washington Post was defamatory, and therefore awarded the Pirates Of The Caribbean star $15 million in damages.
The jury also awarded Heard $2 million in compensatory damages, finding that in her countersuit, Heard did not prove all elements of defamation.
Heard had claimed that Depp had physically and emotionally abused her between 2016 and 2017, allegations which Depp strongly denied.
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Sports personalities, outlets, and broadcasters around the world have been following the case closely since it began and have now reacted to the result.
Former NFL star and current WWE commentator Pat McAfee was recording his live podcast PMS Live when the ruling came in, with he and his panel applauding the decision.
He said: “For him it’s legacy.”
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He added: “Congrats to him for getting his name cleared, congrats to him for going through with this, because for a lot of guys and girls... it kind of gets buried away.
“That being publicly shown, was Johnny Depp’s best case, the public opinion swayed in a fashion that none of us could have expected.”
Meanwhile, English footballing legend and current sports broadcaster, Gary Lineker tweeted: “Depp wins and gets Heard immunity.”
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A bunch of other high-profile athletes from varying sports codes also showed their support by either re-sharing Depp's post-trial statement on Instagram or commenting on it.
Heard was in attendance at the court in Virginia as the verdict was read out, while Depp was said to be watching from the UK, having flown over to perform at concerts with Jeff Beck in Sheffield and London.
The verdict comes following six weeks of evidence at Virginia's Fairfax County Circuit Court, which included testimony from both Depp and Heard, as well as supermodel Kate Moss.
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Esports analyst Marc ‘Caedrel’ Lamont tweeted: “THIS WILL BE THE DAY YOU ALMOST CAUGHT CAPTAIN JACK SPARROW.
“JOHNNY WONNNNNNNN.”
Depp's lawyer Camille Vasquez said in her closing remarks that the 'mountain' of evidence that Depp assaulted his former partner was 'simply not there'.
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She said: "It is disturbing to think Ms Heard would make up the horrific tales of abuse that she testified to in this courtroom.
"What Ms Heard testified to in this courtroom is a story of far too many women, but the overwhelming evidence and weight of that evidence is that it is not her story.
"It is not Ms Heard's story.
"It was an act of profound cruelty not just to Mr Depp, but to true survivors of domestic abuse for Ms Heard to hold herself out as a public figure representing domestic abuse.
"It was false, it was defamatory and it caused irreparable harm."
Topics: Football, Gary Lineker, NFL, WWE, Australia
Jayden Collins