Megan Rapinoe, double world champion with the United States women’s team, considered that Spanish soccer player Jennifer Hermoso, who was kissed by RFEF president Luis Rubiales after Spain’s World Cup triumph, was “physically harassed” by a man who branded misogynist and sexist.
“What happened made me think about everything we have to put up with. Think about the weight that the Spanish team had to carry. Some players who stood up last year (when protesting the treatment received by the coach and the RFEF) are still without being with the team. Maybe it’s something that galvanized them, but you shouldn’t feel that”, said Rapinoe in an interview published this Tuesday by ‘The Atlantic’ and collected by the EFE agency.
“And there was another image that shows the deep level of misogyny and sexism in that Federation and in that man (Rubiales) after the final whistle, simply grabbing his crotch. What backwards world do we live in? On the biggest stage, on the you should be celebrating, Jenni had to be physically harassed by that person,” the OL Reign footballer continued.
Rapinoe referred to Rubiales’ kiss to Jennifer Hermoso at the World Cup medal ceremony, in which Spain made history by winning its first world title in the final against England. At the moment, the president of the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) is not considering resigning from his position and retired for a few days in Motril with his relatives.
Rapinoe highlighted the merits of the Spanish international players for their historic achievement and praised the football philosophy with which they grew up. “Many of these players always play together. Most play in Spain, most for Barcelona, and they have the same style. There is a deep game philosophy,” she said.
He also reflected on the difficulties that female footballers face off the pitch. “I realized for a long time that we play two games at the same time. One, against ourselves. And then another, all playing to win the equality and progress that we deserve,” he said. “We want those teams to have equal pay, and have the resources they deserve, and not suffer from misogyny, racism and sexism,” he added.
Rapinoe was one of the players who fought the most to get a new collective agreement in the United States that provides for equal pay in professional soccer in the country. The Players’ Associations of the players and the players agreed in 2022 to an agreement that guarantees equal pay ’through identical economic terms’, including prizes for participating in the World Cup for both the women’s and men’s teams.
It was a historic step that avoids distinctions in economic treatment between the women’s team, a power in world football, twice consecutive World Champion in 2015 and 2019, and the men’s team, which despite its growth, still does not have that power. sports.
If giant steps were taken at the federal level, American women’s soccer lived dark pages in its league, the NWSL, after an investigation revealed systematic abuse of soccer players at all levels.