Former Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) President, Luis Rubiales has denied he sexually assaulted a star player on the women’s national team with an unwanted kiss.
Rubiales was accused of sexually assaulting Jennifer Hermoso after kissing her following their World Cup victory last year. He said Hermoso had consented to the kiss during the medal ceremony, which was televised globally and that he is only being questioned because he is a man.
Prosecutors in Spain are seeking a two-and-a-half year prison sentence for Rubiales after he was legally accused of sexual assault for kissing Hermoso “without [her] consent or acceptance.” But He denies the charge.
“For me, there is no crime,” Rubiales told TV channel La Sexta. “That is my opinion, my humble opinion, which I also lived through.”
Rubiales had tendered an apology for the kiss, but insists there was nothing sexual about his actions and claimed he had asked Hermoso for consent, to which she allegedly replied “vale,” — Which means “OK” in Spanish.
“Vale so, we gave each other a peck …that is my version,” he said.
“Whoever sees the images, for real, I cannot reach an understanding on how someone can think that is sexual assault.”
Rubiales also claimed he is being questioned over the incident because he is a man.
“Anyone can be questioned, even you, any person … what you (media) are wanting to do is curtail the freedom of thought … many news outlets want to curtail the freedom of thought,” he claimed.
