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Royal Spanish Football Federation President Luis Rubiales has had to apologize for kissing Spanish player Jennifer Hermoso on the mouth during the medal ceremony after Spain won the Women’s World Cup. The kiss was widely viewed as inappropriate given the sport’s long-standing allegations of sexual misconduct by male soccer presidents and coaches against female players on national teams.
Straight Arrow News contributor Adrienne Lawrence says Rubiales “violated the soccer star’s boundaries and sense of bodily autonomy.”
While handing out gold medals to his nation’s team on Sunday, the President of the Spanish Soccer Federation was displayed across the jumbotron as he grabbed a player and kissed her on the lips.
That player, Jenni Hermoso, was later caught in the locker room telling her teammates that she was not a fan of how Luis Rubiales kissed her during the celebration of the Women’s World Cup win over England. Now after backlash sparked worldwide against Rubiales, well, Hermoso had to release a statement trying to downplay the incident, calling it a mutual gesture prompted by joy. And President Rubiales, how did he respond? Well, he denounced critics of the kiss, calling them idiots.
The only idiots here are Rubiales and the folks trying to act like this isn’t grade-A workplace sexual harassment. The president of the Spanish Soccer Federation needs to go, and stat.
