Spanish Football Pres. Luis Rubiales Refuses to Quit Amid Jenni Hermoso Kissing Scandal

Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) president Luis Rubiales announced Friday (August 25) that he insists on staying at his post following his behavior in the aftermath of his team's victory at the FIFA Women's World Cup final when they beat England 1-0.

The uproar from football fans and players alike came after Rubiales kissed 33-year-old player Jenni Hermoso on the lips. He was also caught grabbing his crotch earlier in the game while sitting next to the Spanish royal family's Queen Letizia and Princess Sofia, her 16-year-old daughter with Spanish monarch King Felipe VI.

Rubiales to FIFA, RFEF: 'I Will Not Resign!'

According to the BBC, the world football body, FIFA, and the RFEF held an extraordinary general assembly to address the incident this week, where Rubiales "unreservedly" apologized for all of his misbehavior but has refused to resign for the time being.

"I will not resign!" he told the meeting.

He also defended his actions, calling the kiss to Hermoso a consolation after her penalty kick in the game's 70th minute was denied by England's star goalkeeper Mary Earps, who won the Golden Glove in the tournament for the feat.

"It was a spontaneous kiss. Mutual, euphoric, and consensual," he added. "That's the key."

With Rubiales's pronouncement, FIFA might apply its disciplinary code to sanction him, specifically, Article 13, which covers any and all "offensive behavior and violations of the principles of fair play," such as "insulting a natural or legal person in any way, especially by using offensive gestures, signs, or language" and "behaving in a way that brings the sport of football and/or FIFA into disrepute."

It has also been revealed that the 46-year-old football chief is a bachelor, not in a relationship, and not previously or currently married.

Spanish PM Sanchez, US Team Captain Rapinoe Call for Rubiales's Sacking

Rubiales further stated the call for him to resign was a "social assassination," partially due to some of the liberal-minded political grandstanding of some players and executives in FIFA, as well as in the wider society.

It could be noted that retiring US soccer team captain Megan Rapinoe, a known advocate of LGBT+ rights, has since put on record she would allow a transgender woman into her football team. She also slammed Rubiales for the act, saying it was signaling what she described as "a deep level of misogyny," while also addressing other factors plaguing the Spanish team prior to the World Cup, such as the apparent machismo of the sport in the country which some of the female players on the team have protested against.

"Think how much that Spanish team had to shoulder," she explained. "Some of the players who stood up way back last year [to protest poor treatment by their coach and federation] still aren't on the team. Maybe that was something that galvanized them, but you shouldn't have to have that."

The Spanish football union FUTPRO, which represented Hermoso, said the incident should not go unpunished. For her part, Hermoso responded that FUTPRO was coordinating with her publicists and was "taking care of defending [her] interests" about the matter.

Meanwhile, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, himself the leader of the left-wing party Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE), called for his resignation, calling his act "unacceptable" and his apology insufficient.

Tags

Fifa, Football, Soccer, Spain, LGBTQ