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BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — The embattled president of Spain’s soccer federation defiantly refused to step down Friday after insisting that a kiss on the lips with Females’s Soccer player Jenni Hermoso modified into consensual, an assertion that Hermoso strongly denied.
In the intervening time, all 22 of Hermoso’s fellow world champions, and 58 other Spanish avid gamers, presented they’re going to now no longer play for Spain if Luis Rubiales doesn’t resign.
Facing his that you might per chance maybe well presumably additionally consider elimination from dwelling of work, the 46-year-historical Rubiales solid himself because the victim at an emergency assembly of the federation in Madrid.
“I won’t resign,” he declared four events in quick succession, to applause from the overwhelmingly male viewers.
Rubiales, who modified into additionally chastised for grabbing his crotch after Spain’s 1-0 victory over England on Sunday, is under elephantine tension to leave his post.
The kiss marred the title celebrations in entrance of a global viewers, and criticism has step by step mounted. Spain’s acting prime minister, avid gamers unions, avid gamers for Spain’s ladies folks’s crew, and even some avid gamers on men’s groups possess talked about he must lunge.
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Several Spanish news media shops reported on Thursday that Rubiales would step down. As a substitute, he talked about on Friday that he’s the victim of a witch hunt by “flawed feminists.”
Whereas Rubiales held his ground, federation vice president Rafael del Amo, who had been accountable for ladies folks’s soccer, presented that he modified into resigning, adopted by no longer decrease than two other federation members. Del Amo had urged Rubiales to additionally resign.
Amongst these applauding Rubiales had been ladies folks’s nationwide crew coach Jorge Vilda and men’s nationwide crew coach Luis de la Fuente. Till Friday’s assembly, he had received no public reduction in Spain, with political parties from both the left and the comely speaking out against him.
In his speech to the assembly, Rubiales talked about Hermoso “lifted me up” in a celebratory gesture and he requested her for “a miniature kiss?” and he or she “talked about sure.”
“The kiss modified into the same I might well additionally give one of my daughters,” Rubiales talked about.
The televised broadcast of the medals ceremony didn’t picture the first moments when Rubiales congratulated Hermoso. But it indubitably does picture that his feet had been on the ground forward of he held her face and kissed her.
Hermoso contradicted Rubiales’ model in a assertion issued later by arrangement of her FUTRPO avid gamers’ union. She talked about that she did no longer consent to the kiss and didn’t are trying to gain the president.
“I won’t tolerate anyone striking in doubt my discover and quite a bit extra so that anyone invents words that I did no longer direct,” she talked about.
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The assertion modified into signed by Hermoso, all 22 of her fellow world champions, and 58 other Spanish avid gamers. The avid gamers who signed the assertion talked about they’d now no longer play for Spain “if the picture leadership stays in fee.”
Rubiales talked about he would defend his honor in court against politicians, including two ministers, who referred to as his kiss an act of sexual violence. One amongst them modified into acting Deputy Top Minister Yolanda Díaz, who urged the authorities to rob “urgent measures.”
“Impunity for macho actions is over,” Díaz talked about. “Rubiales can’t continue in dwelling of work.”
Hay límites que no se pueden cruzar y esto no lo podemos tolerar. Estamos contigo compañera.
— Aitana Bonmatí Conca (@AitanaBonmati) August 25, 2023
Alexia Putellas, Hermoso’s teammate and a two-time Ballon d’Or winner because the most straightforward player on the planet, posted a message of reduction on X, formerly is known as Twitter.
“That is unacceptable,” the Barcelona player wrote. “I’m with you, my teammate, Jenni Hermoso.”
A form of teammates rapidly adopted.
Aitana Bonmatí, the Spain midfielder named the most straightforward player of the Females’s World Cup, talked about on X: “There are limits that you can’t depraved and we can’t tolerate this. We’re with our teammate.” Crew captain Ivana Andrés and Olga Carmona, whose aim won the final, additionally joined in exhibiting their reduction for Hermoso.
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The president of Spain’s ladies folks’s league, Beatriz Álvarez, told Spanish advise broadcaster RTVE that she modified into no longer stunned because Rubiales’ “ego is above his dignity.”
“What surprises and scandalizes me are his words,” Álvarez talked about. “Every time he speaks he reveals what form of person he in point of fact is.”
Spain’s authorities deliberate to file a lawsuit Friday alleging that Rubiales violated the nation’s sports guidelines, in accordance with Víctor Francos, secretary of advise for sports and head of Spain’s Greater Council for Sports. If Spain’s Administrative Court docket for Sports agrees to listen to the suit, the council will suspend Rubiales briefly pending the court’s ruling, Francos talked about.
If discovered guilty by the court for committing sexist acts, Rubiales will be ruled unfit to elevate dwelling of work. Francos talked about he would are watching for the court to lunge its standard Thursday assembly as a lot as Monday.
Spanish soccer membership Barcelona, which equipped 9 avid gamers for Spain’s crew, talked about Rubiales’ habits “modified into completely harmful.” Precise Madrid talked about it supported the resolution by the authorities to rob a glimpse at to suspend Rubiales. Sevilla referred to as for his resignation. Espanyol additionally joined within the criticism.
FIFA, the governing physique of soccer, opened a disciplinary case against Rubiales on Thursday. The FIFA disciplinary committee will judge whether Rubiales violated its code relating to to “the classic guidelines of decent habits” or behaved “in a approach that brings the game of soccer and/or FIFA into disrepute.”
Disciplinary judges can impose sanctions on contributors starting from warnings and fines to suspensions from the game. FIFA gave no timetable for the ruling.
FIFA’s investigation got here after Spain’s acting prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, talked about earlier this week that Rubiales’ are trying to disclose sorry — after he first insulted his critics — modified into unconvincing and that “he must continue taking extra steps.”
The Netherlands-essentially based FIFPRO player’s union, which had already demanded action against Rubiales, reiterated its location after his assembly speech.
The excellent linked institution to live quiet has been European soccer physique UEFA, for which Rubiales is a vice president. FIFPRO urged UEFA to inaugurate its own disciplinary case.
Rubiales, who led the Spanish avid gamers union for eight years forward of taking on as federation president in 2018, is currently heading the UEFA-backed relate to host the men’s World Cup in 2030. Spain is bidding with neighboring Portugal and Morocco, and additionally presumably Ukraine.
Rubiales made 339,000 euros ($365,000) in 2021 after taxes, for presiding over the federation with a price range of 382 million euros ($412 million). The federation runs Spain’s men’s and girls folks’s nationwide soccer groups and its semi-knowledgeable and beginner soccer leagues. It additionally organizes the referees for La Liga. The authorities maintains some oversight of the entity on the other hand it will probably’t name or rob away its executives.
Quickly forward of the kiss, Rubiales grabbed his crotch in a victory gesture, with Queen Letizia of Spain and 16-year historical Princess Sofía standing inner reach.
He equipped an apology for that, saying it modified into in a moment of “euphoria” and directed in the direction of Vilda on the sphere.
The precious members of the elite in Spanish men’s soccer spoke out against Rubiales on Thursday, when it regarded worship he modified into bowing out. Their words of reproach continued to trickle in after Rubiales’ diatribe on Friday.
“What an embarrassment,” feeble Spain goalkeeper Iker Casillas talked about on X. “We will deserve to possess spent the final 5 days talking about our ladies folks avid gamers, relating to the enjoyment they gave us all! About how proud we’re that they gave us a title that we didn’t possess in ladies folks’s soccer, as a substitute …”
Precise Betis forward Borja Iglesias, who has every so often been referred to as up for Spain’s nationwide crew, talked about he would no longer play for his nation yet any other time “till issues replace.”
