Luis Rubiales, the former president of Spain’s soccer federation who resigned after he forcibly kissed a national women’s team player following their World Cup win, has been found guilty of sexual assault charges stemming from the incident.
The Audiencia Nacional court in Madrid fined Rubiales over 10,000 euros as punishment, the Associated Press reports. Prosecutors had sought a one-year prison sentence following the conviction.
Outside the court’s decision, Rubiales previously begrudgingly resigned from his position due to outrage over the incident and was banned from women’s soccer for three years by FIFA.
On Aug. 20, 2023, in Sydney, Australia, following Spain’s victory over England, Rubiales kissed forward Jennifer Hermoso on the lips as the Spanish national women’s team celebrated its historic first World Cup win.
Hermoso spoke out about the moment afterward, saying the kiss was unwanted. “I want to clarify that, as seen in the images, at no time did I consent to the kiss that he gave me, and, of course, in no case did I lift the president. I do not tolerate my word being questioned and much less that they invent words I never said.”
The court also barred Rubiales from contacting or being in the vicinity of Hermoso for one year and ordered him to pay Hermoso about 3,000 euros for “moral damage caused to her.”
Rubiales was initially defiant amid the outrage, calling his critics “idiots and stupid people,” but ultimately offered a tepid apology before resigning from his post. Even in court, he reiterated that he believed the kiss was consensual. “I am absolutely sure that she gave me her permission,” Rubiales said in testimony. “In that moment it was something completely spontaneous.”
Rubiales was also charged with coercion stemming from the unwanted kiss — Hermoso said Rubiales pressured her to defend him as criticism mounted against him — but he was cleared of those charges. Three other men charged with coercion — former women’s team coach Jorge Vilda, sports director of the men’s team Albert Luque, and head of marketing Ruben Rivera — were also acquitted.
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