Five days after stepping down as Spain’s football chief, Luis Rubiales arrived at a court in Madrid today to face sexual assault charges for forcibly kissing Women’s World Cup player Jenni Hermoso.
The 46-year-old was summoned to the Madrid court before midday (1000 GMT) today, where he will give evidence before judge Francisco de Jorge, who is leading the investigation into the kiss.
During the hearing, which is not open to the public, Rubiales will be questioned as a defendant regarding allegations of “sexual assault,” according to a court statement earlier this week. Hermoso will also be called to testify at a later date.
Rubiales, wearing a navy blue suit and white shirt, said nothing before entering the courthouse with his attorney.
Spanish prosecutors last week formally charged Rubiales with alleged sexual abuse and coercion when, according to Hermoso, he pressured her to speak out in his defense immediately after the scandal broke.
The case comes just four weeks after Rubiales sparked outrage when he grabbed the midfielder and forcibly kissed her in front of shocked spectators after Spain beat England 1-0 in the World Cup final on August 20.
Rubiales arrives at the High Court in Madrid today to be charged with sexual assault
Former president of the Royal Spanish Football Federation Luis Rubiales arrives at the Supreme Court in Madrid today
The 46-year-old has been summoned to Madrid’s Audiencia Nacional court at 12:00 (10:00 GMT), where he will appear before Judge Francisco de Jorge, who is leading the investigation.
Five days after being sacked as Spain’s football chief, Luis Rubiales is due to appear in court on Friday on charges of sexual assault for forcibly kissing World Cup women’s player Jenni Hermoso
Rubiales, then head of the Spanish football federation RFEF, has repeatedly emphasized that the kiss was consensual.
But Hermoso has said this was not the case and left her feeling like a “victim of an attack.”
De Jorge admitted on Monday that the Public Prosecution Service had filed a complaint against Rubiales filed last week, alleging “crimes of sexual assault” and “coercion.”
According to a recent reform of the Spanish penal code, a non-consensual kiss can be considered sexual assault, a category that groups all forms of sexual violence.
De Jorge is conducting the preliminary investigation into the allegations against Rubiales, and will then decide whether the case should go to trial.
If Rubiales is found guilty of sexual assault, he could face a penalty ranging from a fine to four years in prison, prosecutors’ sources said.
In their complaint, prosecutors said they included the crime of coercion because of Hermoso’s statement in which she said that “she and those close to her were under constant pressure from Luis Rubiales and his professional entourage to justify and condone his actions.”
The global outcry over the incident virtually overshadowed victory celebrations for Spain’s World Cup champions.
After refusing to resign over the kiss for three weeks, Rubiales, who was suspended by FIFA on August 26, resigned late on Sunday but continued to insist the kiss was consensual in a TV interview with Britain’s Piers Morgan.
Former president of the Royal Spanish Football Federation Luis Rubiales arrives at the Supreme Court in Madrid today
Former Spanish FA president Luis Rables claims anger over ‘kissgate’ is due to misunderstanding of Latin American culture in TalkTv interview with Piers Morgan
Rubiales is accused of sexual assault for kissing Spanish player Jennifer Hermoso on the lips without consent after Spain’s 1-0 win over England in the World Cup final on August 20.
“What we had was a spontaneous act, a mutual act, an act that both consented to, that was driven by the emotion of the moment,” he said, describing the kiss as “100 percent non-sexual.”
He claimed that the anger over the kiss is due to a misunderstanding of Latin culture and insisted that he would have done the same with a male player.
Rubiales said, “We were both emotional. We congratulated each other, I asked her “Can I give you a kiss?” – which is normal in our country – I give her a quick kiss, I think she gave me one or two slaps in the side and that was it.
“No intention of course, no sexual connotation or anything, just a moment of happiness, just great joy in that moment.”
The hearing comes with new coach Montse Tome, the first woman to lead the team, set to announce her squad on Friday for the UEFA Women’s Nations League matches against Sweden and Switzerland on September 22 and 26.
Her first task will be to convince the 23 world champions to don the red jersey again after she and dozens of others said they would not play for the national team without major changes at the head of the federation.
The players have not yet said what they will do after Rubiales’ resignation, although the situation has changed since the RFEF fired their controversial coach Jorge Vilda, appointed Tome in his place and promised further internal reforms.
‘We’ve had conversations. I don’t think there will be any problem,” Rafael del Amo, head of the RFEF women’s football committee, told Cope Radio on Tuesday.
“I think things will move forward.”