Madrid — A female Spanish soccer player told a court Monday that her boss kissed her against her will as millions watched on television, then pressured her to say it was consensual, in a case widely seen as putting machismo in sport on trial.
Jenni Hermoso testified before Madrid’s High Court as Luis Rubiales, the former president of the Spanish Soccer Federation, went on trial facing charges of sexual assault and coercion. Rubiales entered a plea of not guilty.
The 47-year-old prompted outrage in 2023 as he cupped star player Hermoso’s head and gave her an unsolicited kiss on the mouth after Spain beat England to win the Women’s World Cup Final in Australia.
In the hours after the incident, Rubiales allegedly tried to pressure Hermoso into saying that the kiss was consensual.
The furor partially overshadowed Spain’s triumph and prompted Spain’s own #MeToo moment when women posted #SeAcabo — it’s over — on social media, signaling they would not tolerate macho treatment in sport anymore.
In a highly anticipated trial, beamed live on television in Spain, Hermoso told the court she felt disrespected as a woman.
“My boss was kissing me, and this shouldn’t happen in any social or work setting. A kiss on the lips has a connotation that goes beyond a kiss of courtesy and friendship,” she said. “As a woman I felt disrespected. It was a moment that stained one of the happiest days of my life. For me it is very important to say that at no point did I seek that act, let alone expect it.”
After the final in Australia, Hermoso said on the team’s journey back to Spain, she said she came under pressure from Rubiales and other soccer federation officials to agree to a statement which said it was a consensual kiss.
“They had never asked me about it,” she said. “I said no.”
Hermoso said she was also asked to make a video with Rubiales for the media when the team’s plane stopped off in Doha on the way back, to downplay the incident. She said she refused.
Hermoso said when she returned to Spain, she received death threats and had to leave Madrid with her family.
“I had cameramen outside my house 24/7 and cars. I received death threats. I had to leave Madrid with my family. It was impossible to be there,” she said.
She said she had to see her psychologist more than normal because of the repercussions of the case.
“I didn’t choose this. I never would. Why did this have to happen to me? Until today, it feels like my life has been on standby” because of the case, she said.
A recent reform of the Spanish penal code classified a non-consensual kiss as sexual assault.
Rubiales, who had been soccer federation chief since 2018, initially dismissed the kiss as a “peck” but gave in to pressure and resigned in September 2023 after an investigation began into the case.
Amid huge international media interest, the trial in Madrid is expected to run for three weeks. Then the judges will retire to consider their verdicts.
Prosecutors are seeking two and a half years in prison for Rubiales if he is convicted on the sexual assault charges.
Three other former soccer officials are also accused of trying to coerce Hermoso into saying that the kiss was consensual.
They are ex-women’s national team coach Jorge Vilda and two other Spanish soccer federation officials Ruben Rivera and Albert Luque. All face prison terms of up to 18 months in prison if convicted but deny coercion.
Four teammates from Spain’s soccer team are expected to appear as witnesses for the prosecution.
Misa Roriguez, Alexia Putellas, Irene Paredes and Laia Condia, who all play for teams in Spain or Britain, will appear during the trial.
Rubiales, who is expected to take the stand on February 12, has denied coercing Hermoso into the kiss.
The case has gripped Spain. Before the trial got under way, Equality Minister Ana Redondo posted on social media X: “Thanks to you [Jenni] and your teammates we added another victory for feminism.”
In the days after the scandal blew up, the saga took an unexpected turn when Rubiales’ mother Angeles Bejar started a brief hunger strike in support of her son inside a Catholic Church in the family’s hometown of Motril in southern Spain.
In a sign that this was a defining moment not just for Spanish sport but for women’s rights, the country’s World Cup women’s soccer team staged a temporary strike and refused to play under the existing managers of the Spanish federation.
Women have made great advances in recent years in Spain.
Half of the 22 cabinet posts in the Spanish government are occupied by women, from the treasury to labor ministries.
Isabel Díaz Ayuso, the Madrid regional leader who is a star figure of the conservative opposition, is considered a possible future prime minister.
With 74.6 out of 100 points, Spain ranks 6th in the European Union on the gender equality index,six points above the EU average.
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