All products featured on Vogue are independently selected by our editors. However, we may receive compensation from retailers and/or from purchases of products through these links.
An exciting World Cup season came to an unfortunate end in Spain earlier this month, as Spanish soccer federation president Luis Rubiales set off a firestorm with his behavior toward a member of the national women’s team. Below, find a full explainer of what Rubiales did, how the player in question responded, and what kind of reaction his conduct has gotten around the world:
What did Rubiales do?
Rubiales was seen forcibly kissing soccer forward Jenni Hermoso on the lips after the team’s historic win against England on August 20, with the disturbing, on-camera moment quickly going viral on social media.
How did Hermoso react?
“I didn’t like it,” Hermoso said during a livestream video from the locker room after the kiss, later characterizing it to media as a “natural gesture of affection and gratitude.” However, days later, Hermoso released a joint statement via her union denying Rubiales’s claim that the kiss had been consensual; her statement was co-signed by Spain’s entire World Cup squad and 58 former players, who pledged to boycott playing until Rubiales was removed from his position. “I want to clarify, as you can see in the images, that at no time did I consent to the kiss that he gave me,” Hermoso said, adding: “I won’t tolerate that my word is called into question, and even less so that words are invented which I didn t say.”
Will Rubiales resign?
It doesn’t seem likely, as he gave a speech on Friday, August 25, blaming “false feminists” for attempting to mount a campaign of “social assassination” against him. However, he could be let go from his position anyway, as Spain’s Sports Council (CSD) president and secretary of state for sport have confirmed that they are seeking to remove Rubiales by bringing a complaint to the country’s Administrative Sports Court (TAD). “Neither the CSD nor its president can remove [Rubiales]. I can’t sack anybody. But we can take the case to TAD if we believe a serious offence has been committed, and TAD can approve it or not,” said Victor Francos, head of CSD. On Friday, FIFA suspended Rubiales from all football-related activities for 90 days, and as of this Monday, August 28, Spanish prosecutors had opened an investigation into whether Rubiales’s conduct could result in sexual aggression charges.
Who has spoken out against Rubiales in Hermoso’s defense?
The condemnation of Rubiales has been near-universal, with Ballon d’Or winner Alexia Putellas and World Cup MVP Aitana Bonmatí posting messages of support for Hermoso on social media; Beatriz Álvarez, the president of Spain’s women’s league, told Spanish state broadcaster RTVE that she was not surprised by the events because Rubiales’s “ego is above his dignity.”
How is Rubiales’s mother involved in all this?
Rubiales’s mother, Ángeles Béjar, locked herself in an Andalusian church on Monday and claimed to be on a hunger strike in protest of “the inhuman, bloodthirsty witch hunt which my son is being subjected to.”
