Disgraced Spanish football boss who grabbed and kissed Women's World Cup winner faces two-and-a-half-years in jail
27 March 2024, 20:33 | Updated: 27 March 2024, 20:36
Former Spanish football chief Luis Rubiales could face up to two-and-a-half years in prison for grabbing and kissing Women's World Cup winner Jenni Hermoso.
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Following the final last year Rubiales was seen grabbing the Spanish forward after her side beat England's Lionesses. Amid celebrations after the match he placed his hands on either side of her head and kissed her.
He has since been charged with one count of sexual assault and one count of coercion following the unsolicited kiss, court documents show. The offences carry jail terms of one year and one-and-a-half years respectively.
The incident following the final in Sydney on August 20 last year sparked global outrage and calls for Rubiales to resign from his post as head of the Spanish football federation.
Hermonso said the kiss was unwanted and said it was demeaning. Rubiales, meanwhile, said it was consensual. He denies any wrongdoing.
While prosecutors are calling for the two-and-a-half-year sentence, they also want him to pay at least €50,000 in compensation to Hermoso.
A non-consensual kiss is considered sexual assault under international law.
Rubiales “grabbed the player’s head with both hands and surprisingly and without consent or the player’s acceptance, he kissed her on the lips”, prosecutors wrote on the document.
The papers said once he realised his actions had “personal and professional consequences”, Rubiales and his supporters started to force “constant pressure” on Hermoso.
He wanted to exert pressure on her so that she would “publicly justify” the kiss as consensual, it said.
Rubiales was suspended by Fifa six days after the kiss following public pressure. He later resigned from the role.
Following the incident, Hermoso said was dealing with “anxiety and intense stress” for months, prosecutors said.
Rubiales is also being tried alongside former colleagues for allegedly putting pressure on Hermoso. The associates are Jorge Vilda, the former women’s coach, Albert Luque, the men’s team director, and Ruben Rivera, the marketing boss of the Spanish football federation.
It comes after the federation promised to conduct a forensic audit of alleged "irregular conduct" by Rubiales.
The federation said last week it was co-operating with the country's criminal authorities after a raid on its headquarters in relation to a corruption and money-laundering investigation.
The police were also reported to have raided an apartment in Granada belonging to Rubiales, who was banned from all football activity for three years last October over his misconduct at last summer's Women's World Cup final.
The federation issued a statement on Wednesday confirming its management commission will now examine "any type of contract that may be under suspicion due to the actions of its former president, Luis Rubiales".
