The names of the four English rugby players accused of raping a New Zealand woman were released on Tuesday. And guilty or not the men will forever live with the allegations. It is not the first time high-profile sportsmen have found themselves in trouble for their sexual antics — and while the charges have more often been dropped than not, it underlines a growing concern in the sporting world.

We list some of sports more high-profile cases:

1) Makhaya Ntini:

The first black cricketer to play for South Africa, Makhaya Ntini was seen as the perfect role model for young black youth in SA. He had the world at his feet, but when then he was accused of raping a young woman in Port Elizabeth in 1997. Ntini was initially sentenced to six years in jail as the judge looked to make an example of the Proteas seamer. Ntini — who missed the 1999 Cricket World Cup as a result of the charges — was later acquitted on appeal, and while he never spent any time behind bars, it proved to be a harrowing ordeal for the popular Ntini and served notice to many young sportsmen in South Africa.

2) Robbie Kempson:

In 2000, former Springbok prop Robbie Kempson was accused by a 17-year-old schoolgirl of attempted rape. The girl had spent the night at Kempson's house following a party in celebration of the Stormers win over the Highlanders. Kempson was arrested, but released on bail the following evening during a special hearing, and while some felt he had received special treatment due to his public profile, the girl — evidently the sister of one of Kempson's friends — later decided against pursuing the charges.

3) Canterbury Bulldogs

In 2004, a 20-year-old woman claimed up to six members of Sydney's Canterbury Bulldogs team repeatedly raped her in a swimming pool at a plush hotel in Coffs Harbour. The alleged assault followed drunken celebrations in the town following a pre-season victory over the club's rivals, the Canberra Raiders. The players were never arrested due to lack of evidence, but the case exposed a shocking culture of sexual depravity in the sport. Stories of prostitutes being hired for group sex, and "bonus" points being given if women were shared between team-mates were soon making the rounds. The practice known as "roasting", a reference to meat being stuffed, is not considered uncommon with one player claiming: "Some of the boys love a 'bun'," said one. "Gang banging is nothing new for our club or the rugby league."

4) Paul Dickov, Keith Gillespie and Frank Sinclair:

When Leicester City made their return to the Premiership for the 2004 season, things went sour very quickly when three of the players, — Paul Dickov, Keith Gillespie and Frank Sinclair —, were arrested on allegations of sexual assault and rape while on a training camp in Spain. The players spent six nights in a Spanish jail as an investigation was launched. All three were eventually cleared of any wrongdoing when forensic investigations proved that the allegations were false.

5) Mike Tyson:

Boxer Mike Tyson was no stranger to bad press. His rough upbringing on the streets of New York, his tumultuous marriage to US television star Robin Givens — all of it led to Tyson's very public persona as 'The Baddest man on the Planet'. But in 1991 he stepped well over the line when he was arrested for raping of Miss Black Rhode Island, Desiree Washington, in an Indianapolis hotel room. He was convicted and arrested to three years in prison. Tyson still maintains his innocence, but in 2003 he caused outrage with his comments regarding the ordeal: "I just hate (Washington's) guts. She put me in that state, where I don't know. I really wish I did now. But now I really do want to rape her and her f****g mama."

6) Kobe Bryant:

In the summer of 2003, LA Lakers star Kobe Bryant's public reputation took a serious knock when he was accused of sexually assaulting an employee of the hotel he was staying in at the time. The married Bryant admitted to having a sexual encounter with the woman, but claimed it had been consensual. She did not. Bryant's image was badly tarnished by the claims — he did not help himself by claiming team-mate Shaquille O'Neal would simply have paid to make the claims go away — and a number of large endorsement contracts were terminated. But when his accuser (whose name had been mistakenly released by the court) began receiving death threats, she refused to testify, the case fell apart and all charges were dropped. Bryant later made a public apology for the incident.

7) Stan Collymore (dogging):

Never the most popular of players, Stan Collymore initially reached notoriety after punching and kicking his then girlfriend Ulrika Jonsson. However, but he reached new lows when he was caught 'dogging' (engaging in sexual acts in a semi-public place or watching others doing so) by two undercover reporters. The wannabe 'dogger' was caught cruising a local car park, just a few kilometres from his home that he shared with this wife and young daughter. The former footballer's personalised number plates gave him away.

8) Max Mosley:

FIA President Max Mosley is responsible for overseeing all international motor sports, including Formula One, but he caused an outcry when a video showing Moseley involved in a five-hour orgy with prostitutes was leaked by a British tabloid. The video showed Mosley dominating and submitting to the five hookers, who dressed both as Nazis and concentration camp prisoners. Mosley's father Oswald was a notorious fascist and Hitler supporter, while the FIA president has been controversially linked to his father's beliefs on more than one occasion. Calls for Mosley to resign from his position have been ignored by the controversial FIA boss.

9) Ronaldo and the transvestites:

Brazilian superstar Ronaldo is one the most high-profile players on the planet, constantly the target of the global media, but the coverage in May this year was focussed not on his footballing abilities, but rather his altercation with three transvestite prostitutes in Brazil. Ronaldo had picked up the one prostitute after a fight with this girlfriend, and before long 'she' was in a hotel room with two of 'her' friends. When Ronaldo realised they were men he immediately tried to leave, but the three prostitutes attempted to extort some €30000 from the former Real Madrid striker — or they would go to the press. Of course, before long the incident was splashed across the front pages and Ronaldo was left humiliated and lost a multi-million dollar endorsement deal with a mobile telephone company. Two of the prostitutes have since admitted to lying about taking drugs and having sex with the player, while the ring-leader Andre Luiz Ribeiro reportedly has a case against him for attempting to extort another man under the same circumstances. Investigations later confirmed that while Ronaldo was in the room with the three prostitutes, one of their boyfriends was already on the phone to the papers...

10) Robin van Persie:

In June 2005, Arsenal and Holland Robin van Persie was arrested on suspicion of rape, while in Rotterdam with the Dutch national team for the 2006 World Cup qualifiers. Former Miss Nigeria Holland Sandra Krijgsman claimed she was attacked by Van Persie in a hotel. The Dutch forward was held for 14 nights in prison while the police investigated the allegations, but he was later released without charge. In February 2006, the case against Van Persie was completely dismissed by the Dutch Public Prosecution Service after they completed their investigations. The prosecution stated, after a thorough investigation, that "'no sexual contact with coercion happened." Van Persie spoke of his ordeal several months later, claiming he was treated like a criminal, despite the fact he was completely innocent. It also emerged that over 200 Rotterdam police officers had attempted to view his case files, with the vast majority of them unauthorised to do so.