The spotlight has recently shone brightly on the Spanish Women’s World Cup team, particularly Jenni Hermoso, their top goalscorer throughout the tournament. They have received a lot of praise owing to becoming world champions, and while also received criticism after Jenni was inappropriately grabbed and kissed on the podium.
The FA president, Luis Rubiales, has been criticized by many, including Spain’s acting Prime Minister, saying that his actions are ‘unjustifiable’ and ‘unacceptable’. Now, Luis may have to pay a heavy price for his actions.
Luis Rubiales allegedly to resign as President
Luis Rubiales was seen kissing and inappropriately grabbing Hermoso, Spain’s top goal scorer, at the just concluded Women’s World Cup. When later asked about his acts, he downplayed the incident by calling his accusers ‘idiots’ but later apologized for his inappropriate gesture.
Jenni Hermoso made it clear that “I did not like it” but explained further that she has a great relationship with Rubiales and implied that his intentions were not to harass her.
Following this incident, Luis Rubiales came under severe criticism from many sects. Spain’s acting Prime Minister, Pedro Sanchez, said, “It shows that in our country, there’s a long way to go regarding equality and respect between men and women; what we saw was an unacceptable gesture.”
Spain’s Association for Women in Professional Sports (AMDP) also accused Rubiales of a “lack of decorum, irresponsibility and indecency.”
Following this public outburst, a press release was issued, requesting a meeting with the following statement: “The Royal Spanish Football Federation urgently calls for an Extraordinary General Assembly scheduled for the upcoming Friday, August 25th, commencing at 12 noon, to take place at the Ciudad del Fútbol de las Rozas headquarters.”
Luis probably hoped to weather this storm of criticism, holding on to his seat, but the call for his resignation only got stronger. It was reported by Dailymail a few hours ago that Rubiales is set to resign as he is handed the options to either ‘quit or be banned’ by the Spanish government.
FIFA initiates disciplinary action against Luis Rubiales
In the recently concluded FIFA Women’s World Cup, Spain played against England in the finals and defeated ‘the Lionesses’ by a goal to nothing. As it is custom, the winner and the runner-up of such a crucial duel are paraded on the podium to exchange gold and silver medals. And thereafter, the handing over of the World Cup trophy.
At the trophy presentation moment, the president of the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF), Luis Rubiales, was noticed grabbing and kissing Jenni Hermoso inappropriately, and this act has been rightly criticized by many.
When asked about the incident, Jenni Hermoso, Spain’s all-time record scorer, disapproved of the gesture, saying, “I did not enjoy it”. However, she went on to defend the President’s actions in her comments to AFP, saying,
“It was a spontaneous mutual gesture because of the immense joy winning a World Cup brings. The president and I have a great relationship, his behavior with all of us has been outstanding, and it was a natural gesture of affection and gratitude.”
Spanish football federation president Luis Rubiales plans to resign on Friday after FIFA opened disciplinary proceedings against him over his unsolicited kiss of player Jenni Hermoso, sources have confirmed to ESPN's @RodrigoFaez.
More: https://t.co/PeC6xN6Pq2 pic.twitter.com/zDAhgkxO8c
— ESPN (@espn) August 24, 2023
This act has sparked a lot of reactions in Spain; while some believe it’s not a big deal, others think the gesture is a form of gender-based mistreatment. Spain’s Association for Women in Professional Sports (AMDP) accused Rubiales of a “lack of decorum, irresponsibility and indecency.”
Luis Rubiales later apologized for his lack of decorum, but the Spanish Prime Minister said his apology was ‘unacceptable’. The RFEF later announced that it would hold an emergency Extraordinary General Assembly on Friday to discuss the issue.
“Based on the latest events that took place during the award ceremony of the Women’s World Cup won by the Spanish National Team last Sunday in Sydney, the Federation wishes to inform you that the internal proceedings of the Federation regarding Integrity issues are open, as well as the rest of the applicable protocols.”
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