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Prosecutors are asking for a 30-month prison sentence for Luis Rubiales, the former president of the country’s football federation who is on trial for sexual harassment for kissing footballer Jenni Hermoso after her team won the Women’s World Cup.
Prosecutors from Spain’s national court are seeking one year in prison for the ex football chief for sexual assault and then 18 more months for trying to force Hermoso to publicly play down the incident, Spanish media reported Wednesday. They are also requesting that Rubiales pay Hermoso €50,000 in compensation, while he and three other defendants jointly pay an additional €50,000.
Rubiales has publicly maintained his innocence, insisting the kiss was consensual.
In August 2023, Rubiales kissed Hermoso on the lips while players were receiving medals after their victory. The episode ignited widespread criticism about sexism in football, led to Rubiales’ resignation as president of the Royal Spanish Football Federation and to a sexual assault and coercion probe. A judge ordered Rubiales to stand trial in January.
A letter from the prosecutor’s office, seen by Spanish media, alleged that Rubiales kissed Hermoso on the lips “surprisingly and without the player’s consent or acceptance.” He and his team later proceeded to “exert constant and repeated acts of pressure” so that Hermoso would justify the kiss in public, they continue.
“The events described created in Jennifer Hermoso a situation of anxiety and intense stress, which lasted for several months afterwards,” the letter said.
In their request, prosecutors are also asking 18 months for three football executives also accused of pressuring Hermoso into downplaying the incident in public: Jorge Vilda, the former coach of the country’s national women’s team, Albert Luque, the director of the national men’s team, and Rubén Rivera, the federation’s director of marketing.
Those three executives have denied the accusations of coercion in court, according to Spanish media.
