Women’s World Cup kiss: Spain’s former football boss Luis Rubiales to appear in court on sexual assault allegations
- If the case goes to court, Rubiales could face one to four years imprisonment if found guilty
- Spain’s top 87 female players, including the 23 world champions, refuse to play until Royal Spanish Football Federation changes management line-up
Former Spanish football chief Luis Rubiales will appear before a judge on Friday over a complaint of sexual assault stemming from his allegedly unsolicited kiss on the lips of player Jenni Hermoso that has triggered a furore over sexism in Spanish sport and society.
The events of August 20 eclipsed the national women’s team’s World Cup victory in Sydney and led to protests similar to the #MeToo movement, prompting other women to come forward with reports of sexist treatment and assaults.
It also sent a shudder through the male-dominated ranks of Spain’s football establishment.
Rubiales, 46, has maintained that the kiss was mutual and consensual. After weeks of resisting calls for him to step down as president of the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF), Rubiales, already suspended by FIFA, finally quit on September 10.
But he remains unrepentant.
“I am a good person, that in a moment of maximum happiness, with consent, asking beforehand … In truth, there can be no other intention than the celebration and the joy itself,” he said.
