Former Spanish football boss Luis Rubiales was “aggressive” after the Women’s World Cup final and made “inappropriate” gestures towards English players, said the president of the English federation, Debbie Hewitt, according to a text published Wednesday by Fifa.
The global governing body made public a summary of the testimonies collected by its disciplinary committee which led it, on October 30, to suspend Rubiales for three years from any football-related activity by Fifa.
The manager not only kissed Spanish striker Jenni Hermoso “entirely and forcefully on the mouth”, reported the president of the Football Association (FA), but he also had troubled behavior with certain English internationals, according to She.
According to Fifa, Ms. Hewitt said that Rubiales had “touched and caressed the face of English player Laura Coombs, which (the president of the FA) found slightly strange, then he apparently forcibly kissed the player Englishwoman Lucy Bronze on her face.
The former Spanish football strongman “eagerly hugged and forcibly kissed other players on their cheeks, holding their heads and inappropriately tapping certain parts of their bodies,” said the English leader. in another testimony, established jointly with the New Zealand federation. In her response, Rubiales called it “disgusting” that Hewitt described him as “kind of a creep” and accused her of “blatant lies” or “speaking out of ignorance.” Concerning Coombs, he explains in particular that he “tried to comfort her” after her injury in the final, which resulted in a head bandage and stitches.
The president of the FA also noted the “unpleasant and unnecessarily aggressive” tone of the Spaniard, “unhappy” with the place assigned to him by Fifa staff before the medal ceremony.
On August 20, a few minutes after the world title of the women’s “Roja” in Sydney, the 46-year-old Spanish football boss surprised striker Jenni Hermoso on the mouth, provoking indignation in Spain and worldwide. Under pressure, Rubiales ended up resigning on September 10, saying he was the victim of a “disproportionate campaign”.
