Spanish Prosecutors Accuse Rubiales of Sexual Assault and Coercion for Kissing a Player at World Cup

Spanish state prosecutors have accused Luis Rubiales of sexual assault and coercion for kissing a player on the lips without her consent after the Women’s World Cup final, the country’s prosecutors’ office said Friday.

Rubiales, the now-suspended president of the Spanish soccer federation, kissed Jenni Hermoso during the awards ceremony after Spain beat England to win the title on Aug. 20 in Sydney. Prosecutors presented their case for potential criminal charges against Rubiales to Spain’s National Court in Madrid two days after Hermoso formally accused him of sexual assault.

FIFA suspended Rubiales from his post on Aug. 27, a day after he refused to step down when he delivered a defiant speech to the general assembly of his federation in which he said he was victim of a “witch hunt” by “false feminists.” He was banned from his post for 90 days while FIFA disciplinary judges consider his case. Soccer’s governing body can impose sanctions on individuals ranging from warnings and fines to suspensions from the sport.

Spanish state prosecutors have accused Luis Rubiales of sexual assault and coercion for kissing a player on the lips without her consent after the Women’s World Cup final. . .

I'm no fan of boorish males, but this all seems irrelevant as a breathless news item.

Possibly because a "Women's World Cup" is irrelevant. We're talking about soccer played at a level inferior to boys in junior high. What's the alleged reason to watch? Because they're chicks?

That's apparently what the offender thought. Let's float back to reality on earth, and these stupid incidents wouldn't happen. The problem now is that everyone knows the "Women's World Cup" ain't about the soccer--since as soccer, it's slow and lame.

He shook the hands of other players.

When he stood infront of this player, he grabbed her head with both his hands and slapped a big sloppy one on her. It was obvious from the photo that she was surprised by it and his behavior with the other players shows this was not “the norm.”

Some people will think this is no big deal.

I see it very differently.

As a wife, only my husband is allowed to kiss me on the lips. Anyone else tries and either my husband or I would bust that person’s lips.

As a professional, I would not expect such boorish behavior from someone who is technically my boss, in a professional setting, in front of thousands of people.

As a professional who has had to personally deal with sexual harassment in the workplace (yeah, folks, justify some creepy slug coming up behind me to grab my chest while I’m pouring a cup of coffee), I know that it is both infuriating and degrading. The young me was shocked and humiliated. The old me would have slammed the pot against his head and poured the contents on him.

A suspension is just recompense. He’s been exposed as a crude moron. As a risk manager, I might question the wisdom of keeping him on staff. This player may not cry harassment, but the league has fair warning and the next one will. Hopefully he will conduct himself like a professional in the future.

And just so people don’t think I’m being overly sensitive, my boss John was a good man, a great leader, and treated me like a professional. He and his wife both kissed my cheek on my wedding day, he, my other male co-workers, and I exchanged celebratory hugs when we landed a big account, and he gave me a big hug and paternal kiss on my forehead when I moved to Texas. When my replacement accused him of harassment, I offered to fly back and testify on his behalf (troll got her settlement and moved on). So I’m not one of those “all men are evil” types. I am the mother of sons; I don’t wantbthem falsely accused, either.

But this jerk...yeah, he’s got it coming.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=klGN4lvgWdM

11-second video...poor angle but it was the only camera on the scene.

On my 1970s kiss-meter rating....I’d say on a scale of one to ten....it was a ‘5’.

I generally believe the guy was either hyped-up on some drug, or had consumed alcohol in the hour prior to the event. Beyond that, he was just pumped-up in a ‘bad’ way.

I’m not saying this is ok....

....but - there are significant cultural differences. The Spanish are quite passionate folks and my understanding is that it’s very common to kiss even a stranger on the cheeks. This would be very uncommon here and not welcome.

While in Romania, as a manager visiting a remote office, I happened to be on a cultural holiday - all of the female employees that reported up to me lined up to offer me a flower and a kiss on the cheek. It was very uncomfortable for me! ...and was expected.

Cultural differences can be hard to wrap our heads around. ...but on the lips? Yeah - although the ‘severity’ of this ‘transgression’ needs to be culturally weighted.

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