The suspended Spanish football official Luis Rubiales has been convicted of sexual assault for kissing Jennifer Hermoso against her will. The verdict was delivered much sooner than expected.
Former Spanish football federation president Luis Rubiales has been found guilty of sexually assaulting Jenni Hermoso by kissing her on the lips without her consentafter the 2023 Women’s World Cup final and fined €10,800 euros ($11,284), Spain’s High Court revealed on Thursday. He was also ordered not to go within 200 meters (656 feet) of Hermoso or contact the player for a year. Rubiales was, however, acquitted of coercion.
The charges against Rubiales included kissing Hermoso without her consent and then attempting to coerce Hermoso into declaring the kiss as consensual. Rubiales denied the charges, saying the kiss had been consensual. Hermoso said the opposite, adding she “felt disrespected” by Rubiales after the final, and that the kiss had “stained one of the happiest days of my life.”
In a high-profile case that sparked a conversation in Spain about sexism, prosecutors had pushed fortwo and a half years in prison for Rubiales — one year for sexual assault, and 18 months for allegedly coercing Hermoso, 34, to downplay the incident. Rubiales’ defense team had argued he should be acquitted of both charges.
The three other people who had also been tried for allegedly pressuring Hermoso into saying the kiss had been consensual were cleared.
A verdict hadn’t been expected for several weeks, but just under a week after the trial had concluded came a decision.
Edited by: Chuck Penfold
DW News
