football
Solidarity with Spaniards before the Nations League game
The Swedish and Spanish teams took a stand against sexual assault before the game. photo
© Adam Ihse/TT News Agency/AP
The Spanish footballers received a lot of support at the Nations League game. There is a remarkable group photo with the opponents. The world champions win the game.
Together with the players from the Swedish national team, they… Soccer world champions from Spain sent a sign of global solidarity in the fight against sexual assault.
Before the Nations League game, the players first posed for the team photo with their fists raised. The Spaniards then gathered on the halfway line together with the Swedes behind a poster with the inscription “#SeAcabó”, in German: “Stop now”. Underneath it was written in English: “Our fight is the global fight.”
According to Spanish media reports, posters such as “With you, Jenni and La Roya” could also be read in the stands. When the players came onto the pitch to warm up, they were greeted with great applause, reported “Mundo Deportivo”.
Caldentey scores in stoppage time to make it 3-2
The game ended with a 3-2 win for the world champions. After a turbulent final phase, the decision came in the sixth minute of added time when Mariona Caldentey scored from a penalty. The person responsible, Amanda Ilestedt, had previously received a red card.
Before the game started, however, the impressions of the past few weeks were still reflected. The then head of the association, Luis Rubiales, kissed player Jennifer Hermoso on the mouth at the award ceremony after Spain won the World Cup final in Sydney on August 20th. He asserts that it was done by mutual consent. But Hermoso said she felt “like the victim of an impulsive, sexist and inappropriate act to which I did not consent.”
Spanish women demand changes to the association
The players had demanded personnel and structural changes at the national association RFEF. They also called for an international boycott to emphasize the demands. During negotiations at the training camp before the Sweden game, a number of agreements were reached with the mediation of the government and unions.
Hermoso had also filed a complaint against Rubiales, thus enabling the public prosecutor’s office to file a criminal complaint with the State Court. Hermoso was not nominated for the game in Sweden by the new national coach Montse Tomé in order to “protect” her, the coach said. Hermoso didn’t agree with this justification: “Protect me? From what?”.