FIFA opens investigation against Spanish soccer federation | News

The Disciplinary Commission of the International Federation of Football Associations (FIfA) announced this Thursday that it opened a disciplinary procedure against the president of the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF), Luis Rubiales, after events that occurred during the World Cup final female.

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In a statement, FIFA said that a kiss on the mouth given to a player without her consent and obscene gestures committed in the award box could constitute "violations of articles 13.1 and 13.2 of the Disciplinary Code" of the federation.

On August 20, when the Spanish women's team was crowned world champion, Rubiales grabbed the player Jenni Hermoso by the head with both hands and kissed her on the mouth without her consent. Shortly after, she grabbed her genitals in the box in victory, while the awards ceremony for the World Cup winners was televised to the whole world.

According to the FIFA document, any player or other person who performs a function on their behalf must respect the rules of the game, its Statutes and Regulations, as well as "comply with the principles of fair play, loyalty and integrity".

In addition, he ratified his commitment to respect the integrity of people and stressed that "he will not offer more information about this disciplinary procedure until a final decision is made on it."

In parallel, the acting Minister of the Presidency, Félix Bolaños, assured this Thursday that Spanish society no longer tolerates macho behavior and that the Executive will act in the event that events do not occur regarding the situation of Rubiales at the head of the RFEF.

An extraordinary meeting of said entity is expected to take place this Friday to discuss the case.

Outrage in the sports world

The day before, Hermoso issued a statement that was released by the Association of Professional Soccer Players (Futpro), in which he requested that Rubiales be punished with exemplary measures and that the RFEF sanction his conduct.

Through another statement, the Association of Professional Soccer Players (AFE) made it clear that what happened to the soccer player is extremely serious, "since she is clearly vulnerable to a person who has a position of power over her by initiating an approach or making a physical gesture". In addition, he requested that the case go to court if Rubiales does not resign.

More rejection and criticism

To date, a significant number of criticisms of Rubiales have been disseminated through social networks, pointing out that in his capacity as a sports authority he should not have allowed himself such behavior. Internet users stressed that these events threw a bucket of shame on Spain and revealed the patriarchal machismo that still prevails in that society.

Among the first to react was the Minister of Equality, Irene Montero, who assured that a kiss without consent was "a form of sexual violence" and that women suffer it "on a daily basis and up to now invisible."

The following day, the Vice President of the Spanish Government, Yolanda Díaz, spoke at a press conference that Rubiales had committed an attack and should resign. On the other hand, she pointed out that what happened is an expression of inequality in the field of soccer, in which she recalled that the players suffer wage discrimination.

A few hours later, the acting head of government, Pedro Sánchez, described Rubiales' gesture as unacceptable and asked him to apologize appropriately. "There is still a long way to go in terms of equality, respect and the equalization of rights between men and women," he said.

According to press reports, initially the president of the RFEF ignored the criticism and even used disqualifying words, some rude, to mock those who formulated them. As the debate grew, he was forced to apologize via video. The media have indicated that he even tried to get Hermoso to appear with him in that audiovisual, but the soccer player refused.