Forced kiss: Luis Rubiales provisionally suspended by Fifa

2023-08-27 05:06:13

Faced with his refusal to resign, Fifa intervened. The international football federation announced in a press release on Saturday that its disciplinary committee had taken the decision to “provisionally suspend” Luis Rubiales, the president of the Spanish football federation.

“The Chairman of the FIFA Disciplinary Committee, Jorge Ivan Palacio, decided today to provisionally suspend Mr. Luis Rubiales from all football-related activities at national and international level,” the statement said. This suspension, which takes effect today, is for an initial period of 90 days, pending the disciplinary proceedings opened against Mr. Luis Rubiales on Thursday 24 August”.

The FIFA Disciplinary Committee also prohibited Luis Rubiales “from coming into contact or attempting to come into contact with Ms. Jennifer Hermoso or her immediate entourage”, “in order to preserve, among other things, the fundamental rights of the player and the smooth running of the disciplinary procedure before this disciplinary body”. A measure that extends to all directors and employees of the RFEF, the Spanish Football Federation.

Luis Rubiales is at the heart of an unprecedented crisis in Spanish women’s football, following his forced kiss on player Jenni Hermoso on the podium during the Women’s World Cup trophy presentation on August 20. While the player said in a press release published on August 23 that the kiss was not consented to and that she was demanding action against her president, the latter maintains her innocence. His stance caused an uproar, not only in Spain but also across the world.

In a press release published late in the evening on Friday, the RFEF also flew to the aid of its president, pointing out the “lies” of Jennifer Hermoso and establishing a funny Rubiales defense, on the basis of analysis of four photos taken shortly before the kiss, and announcing legal actions to defend its leader.