Spanish soccer player Jenni Hermoso accuses Luis Rubiales of sexual assault for World Cup kiss

Demonstrators gather during a protest against the President of Spain’s soccer federation Luis Rubiales and to support Spain’s national women’s soccer player Jenni Hermoso in Barcelona on Sept. 4, 2023. (AP)

• Rubiales has insisted the kiss was consensual
• The prosecutor’s office said Hermoso made the accusation on Tuesday

MADRID: Spanish soccer player Jenni Hermoso has accused Luis Rubiales of sexual assault for kissing her without her consent after the Women’s World Cup final, the country’s prosecutors’ office said Wednesday.
Rubiales, the now-suspended president of the Spanish soccer federation, kissed Hermoso during the awards ceremony after Spain beat England to win the title on Aug. 20 in Sydney, Australia.
Rubiales has insisted the kiss was consensual. Hermoso has denied that. She also said she and her family were pressured by the federation to show her support for Rubiales in the immediate aftermath of the scandal caused by the kiss that tarnished her team’s victory.
Spain’s government, players’ unions, players and many citizens have come out in support of Hermoso. Rubiales, meanwhile, has become a soccer outcast even while he refuses to resign.
Rubiales was suspended from his post by FIFA on Aug. 27, a day after he refused to step down when he delivered a defiant speech to the general assembly of his federation in which he claimed he was victim of a “witch hunt” by “false feminists.”
The prosecutor’s office said Hermoso made the accusation on Tuesday. Prosecutors had said last week that they were going to meet with Hermoso to give her the opportunity to present an accusation against Rubiales.
Hermoso, a 33-year-old forward, now plays for Mexican club Pachuca after a long career with top Spanish and European clubs, including Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain and Atletico Madrid.