MADRID — Former Spanish football chief Luis Rubiales has been convicted of sexually assaulting athlete Jenni Hermoso. The incident took place after the 2023 Women’s World Cup final when he kissed her.
Rubiales managed to avoid a jail sentence but was fined over 10,000 euros ($10,400) by Spain’s National Court. Additionally, he has been prohibited from being within 200 meters of Hermoso or contacting her for a year.
Rubiales can appeal the court ruling.
He was not found guilty of coercion for attempting to downplay the kiss he gave to Hermoso on the lips at the awards ceremony following the final match in Sydney. This kiss caused an uproar in Spain and tarnished the celebration of Spain’s first Women’s World Cup victory.
During the high-profile trial that lasted about two weeks, Rubiales said Hermoso consented to the kiss but she denied it.
Prosecutors asked for a prison sentence of 2 1/2 years for Rubiales, being one year for sexual assault and 1 1/2 years for coercion. They wanted the other three defendants accused of coercion to be sentenced to 1 1/2 years in prison.
The three other former Spanish federation members accused of coercion – former women’s team coach Jorge Vilda, sports director of the men’s team Albert Luque, and head of marketing Ruben Rivera – also were cleared.
Hermoso testified that she “felt disrespected” by Rubiales after winning the World Cup. She said she was pressured into recording a video with Rubiales, then the federation president, to downplay the kiss.
Rubiales and the other defendants said they never tried to pressure Hermoso into doing anything. They claimed she didn’t give any importance to the kiss when it happened.
Rubiales resigned under pressure three weeks after the scandal surfaced and was banned by FIFA for three years. He had said he was the victim of a “witch hunt” by “false feminists.”
During his testimony, he said he regretted the kiss because it wasn’t the right attitude for a national federation president. He said it should not be considered sexual assault, though.
The kiss prompted widespread outrage in society beyond soccer and ignited one of the most embarrassing scandals in the history of Spanish soccer.
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