Luis Rubiales refuses to step down as Spanish football federation president
BBC NewsSep 08, 2023
The Facts
FIFA's Disciplinary Committee on Saturday provisionally suspended Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) president Luis Rubiales from all soccer-related activities for 90 days after he kissed Women's World Cup winner Jenni Hermoso on the lips.
This comes a day after Rubiales refused to step down despite being under heavy criticism at an emergency RFEF meeting, claiming the kiss was a "consensual peck" and vowing to fight until the end against what he called a witch hunt.
The Spin
Narrative A
Rubiales has committed a bona fide error in a moment of exhilaration, eclipsing the historic achievement of the Spanish women's national team in the World Cup. While he has a great relationship with Hermoso and other players, it's evident now that he should have realized his actions would be inappropriate, especially during the awards ceremony, because of his position as president of such an important institution.
Narrative B
This outrageous incident isn't a one-off case, but rather the latest example of frequently unprofessional behaviors endured by Spanish female soccer players operating in a male-dominated system. It's telling that it was only when he was under pressure that Rubiales provided even a half-hearted apology after publicly forcing a kiss on Hermoso — he still remains silent on other instances of vulgar conduct and should be held to account.