Two Russian football internationals have been charged with battery and hooliganism after both were involved in brawls in Moscow earlier this month.
Alexander Kokorin of Zenit St. Petersburg and Pavel Mamaev of FC Krasnodar were charged on Thursday following fights at a hotel and at a coffee shop. Three people were injured in the incidents.
Both footballers were detained on Oct. 11 pending an investigation and could face imprisonment of up to five years if convicted.
Footage circulated widely by Russian media shows a man being kicked and punched by a group of people and another incident in which two civil servants appeared to be assaulted in a cafe. The two footballers were present at both incidents.
The court also ordered Kokorin’s younger brother, Kirill, be held for two months.
Kokorin told the court he repented and apologised to one of the victims, but the court rejected his lawyer’s request to release him pending trial, RIA news agency reported.
The players also face possible sanctions from their clubs.
Kokorin has 48 caps for Russia but missed this year’s World Cup in his home country with a knee injury.
Mamaev has represented the national team 15 times but also was not included in the World Cup squad.