Luis Rubiales
Spanish football boss refuses to resign because of the kiss affair – sports authorities want to intervene
Contrary to expectations, Luis Rubiales has not announced his retirement. He received sharp criticism after kissing the newly crowned soccer world champion Jeniffer Hermoso on the mouth at the award ceremony.
© Eidan RUBIO / RFEF / AFP
Luis Rubiales declined to resign after the kiss scandal on Friday. The president of the Spanish Football Association then received severe criticism from many quarters.
Luis Rubiales has resigned as president of the Spanish Football Association after the kiss scandal RFEF rejected. “I will not resign,” said the 46-year-old three times at an extraordinary general meeting of the association on Friday. “Anyone who knows me knows that I will fight to the end.” Recently, public pressure on Rubiales had increased sharply. “I apologize from the bottom of my heart. I had lost control. The kiss was like for one of my children,” Rubiales said, adding: “This is not about justice, it’s about a social execution.”
Rubiales kissed the player Jennifer Hermoso on the mouth without being asked at the award ceremony for the Spanish soccer world champions in Australia last Sunday. Shortly afterwards, Hermoso said in a video that she was uncomfortable with Rubiales’ behavior. “But what should I do,” she added. A storm of indignation broke out and many in Spain called for Rubiales’ resignation. Several media outlets unanimously reported on Thursday that Rubiales would resign.
However, Rubiales was not really insightful in his full pathos speech on Friday. “False feminism isn’t looking for the truth, it’s trying to wear a medal and think we’re moving forward. They don’t care about the people,” he said, lamenting a hunt. “By mutual consent, should a kiss get me out of here? I’ll fight to the end.”
Rubiales does not accept criticism of his behavior
The world association FIFA had initiated disciplinary proceedings against the Spaniard on Thursday. “Fifa reaffirms its unreserved commitment to respecting the integrity of all individuals and therefore strongly condemns any behavior to the contrary,” said the association ” is overwritten. Rubiales is also Vice President of European Football Union Uefa.
Immediately after the incident, the official described the criticism of his behavior as “nonsense”. Rubiales later offered a half-hearted apology and, according to media reports, urged Hermoso to stand up for him. He kissed the 33-year-old “spontaneously” and “without any bad intentions or bad will”, he said. The RFEF released a statement quoting Hermoso. The kiss was by mutual consent, it said.
Spanish politicians and football officials have reacted with severe criticism. “Mr. Rubiales still doesn’t know where he is or what he has done. He is not up to date. He must resign immediately and spare us further embarrassment,” Acting Deputy Prime Minister Yolanda Díaz wrote on Twitter Platform X
Rubiales kissed the player Jennifer Hermoso on the mouth without being asked at the award ceremony for the Spanish soccer world champions in Australia last Sunday. Then there was sharp criticism and outrage, the world association FIFA initiated disciplinary proceedings. At a crisis meeting of the Spanish football association RFEF on Friday in Madrid, he presented himself as the victim of a “hunt” and vehemently refused to resign.
Spain’s sports authority wants to take action against Rubiales
The head of the highest Spanish sports authority CSD, Victor Francos, announced that his institution would now take action against Rubiales. “We will act, we have activated all mechanisms to take the appropriate measures,” he also wrote on X.
However, Francos left open what measures these could be. The incumbent Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez had described Rubiales’ behavior as “unacceptable” days ago, but at the same time admitted that the government had no direct influence on the RFEF. Whether Rubiales should remain president of the Spanish Football Association is not up to him, stressed Sánchez. The association is not controlled by the government.
The head of the league, Javier Tebas, was particularly harsh on Rubiales. “Insults, boasting, blackmail, threats, espionage and persecution, fraudulent use of association organs, we suffer many things and have denounced many things. The list of women and men harmed by Luis Rubiales in these years is too long and it has to be stop,” Tebas wrote on X. “It is impossible to attribute his misogynistic and despicable behavior to an absurd conspiracy when the damage to the reputation of Spanish football as a whole is already inevitable,” added Tebas.
Players’ union Fifpro also called for “immediate disciplinary action” against Rubiales and welcomed FIFA’s disciplinary process. In addition, the players’ union wrote to the European Football Union to investigate the Uefa Vice President.