LAUSANNE: FIFA opened disciplinary proceedings against Luis Rubiales on Thursday after the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) president kissed Spain star Jenni Hermoso following the Women’s World Cup final last weekend.
“The FIFA disciplinary committee informed Luis Rubiales, president of the Spanish Football Association, today that it is opening disciplinary proceedings against him based on the events that occurred during the final,” world football’s governing body said in a statement.
FIFA said the incident “may constitute violations of article 13 paragraphs 1 and 2 of the FIFA disciplinary code.”
Spain star Hermoso released a joint statement with union Futpro on Wednesday, which called for action to be taken against the RFEF president.
“We are working to ensure that acts such as those we have seen never go unpunished, that they are sanctioned and that the exemplary measures are adopted to protect women footballers from actions that we believe are unacceptable,” the statement said.
Human rights organization Amnesty International offered their backing to Hermoso on Thursday.
“Amnesty International wants to show their support for the demands of the player, who has asked the (RFEF) to set underway ‘exemplary measures’ regarding the non-consensual kiss,” said the organization in a statement.
“(We) underline that this behavior is a form of sexual violence like any other, and cannot be justified in any way.”
Spain’s women’s football league, Liga F, has also called for Rubiales to be sacked.
The RFEF have opened an investigation into Rubiales’ conduct and are holding an emergency meeting on Friday.
Rubiales, 46, initially attacked his critics before eventually apologizing but the criticism of his behavior has not abated.
Spanish prime minister Pedro Sanchez previously said that Rubiales’ apology for the kiss was “not enough.”
Earlier Thursday Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti criticized Rubiales for his conduct.
“It’s a very delicate topic, like most people it was behavior that I obviously did not like,” Ancelotti told a news conference.
“It was not the behavior of a president of the federation.”
The Italian coach would not be further drawn on the issue.
“I don’t know if he should resign or not, I think he will take the most adequate decision,” added Ancelotti.
Real Madrid play Celta Vigo in La Liga on Friday and the Galicians’ manager Rafa Benitez also spoke about Rubiales.
“The success of the national team is the news and unfortunately it’s been relegated to the background,” said Benitez.
“We all agree we have seen behavior which was not correct and the competent authorities are there to take decisions.”
Further Spanish clubs joined the wave of dissent against Rubiales on Thursday, following Getafe president Angel Torres the day before.
“We must all be consistent with what we do and say, that’s a fundamental thing,” Atletico Madrid president Enrique Cerezo told TV show Jugones on Spanish channel Mega.
“He will have to do what he considers appropriate, but I think that what he has to do is present his resignation.”
Real Sociedad president Jokin Aperribay also positioned himself against Rubiales.
“This should have been over days ago, it’s a shame that we are here and this has not been concluded,” he told Radio Euskadi.
“What I felt when I saw (his behavior at the final) all at once was that he had to resign, that it couldn’t be.
“That’s what I felt, that he was mistaken. It’s a serious, profound error.”
Meanwhile the Basque football federation said they will not attend the RFEF meeting on Friday because of the “seriousness” of the events which took place at the Women’s World Cup final.
American forward Megan Rapinoe, the world’s highest-profile women’s player, was similarly scathing in an interview with The Atlantic earlier this week.
“What kind of upside-down world are we in? On the biggest stage, where you should be celebrating, Jenni has to be physically assaulted by this guy,” said Rapinoe.
She referred to Rubiales’ behavior at the final as portraying “a deep level of misogyny and sexism.”
FIFA opens disciplinary proceedings against Rubiales over kiss
https://arab.news/69cmv
FIFA opens disciplinary proceedings against Rubiales over kiss
- FIFA said the incident “may constitute violations of article 13 paragraphs 1 and 2 of the FIFA disciplinary code”
- Spain star Hermoso released a joint statement with union Futpro on Wednesday, which called for action to be taken against the RFEF president
Liverpool without Salah beats Inter in Champions League. Barcelona and Bayern win
- Karl became the youngest player to score in three consecutive Champions League games
- Headers by Jules Koundé three minutes apart gave Barcelona a 2-1 comeback victory over Eintracht Frankfurt
After leaving Mohamed Salah in England, Liverpool got a much-needed boost with a 1-0 win over Inter Milan in the Champions League on Tuesday, while Barcelona and Bayern Munich celebrated comeback wins and Chelsea lost.
With Salah out of the squad following his public criticism of the club last week, Dominik Szoboszlai stepped up instead to score the 88th-minute penalty which earned a 1-0 win over one of the competition’s best-performing teams.
It was all the more valuable for coming after a run of one win in six games in all competitions for Arne Slot’s under-pressure team, which moved up to eighth.
Liverpool’s players thought they had taken the lead with Ibrahima Konate’s header in the 31st minute but, after a video review that lasted more than four minutes, it was ruled out for handball as Virgil van Dijk had earlier nodded the ball on to the arm of Hugo Ekitike.
Having taken away a goal from Liverpool, VAR came to the visitors’ aid when it spotted that Alessandro Bastoni had tugged Florian Wirtz’s shirt in the area, with the midfielder flailing to the ground. Szoboszlai converted the penalty.
Bayern’s new star shines
Bayern’s 17-year-old midfielder Lennart Karl produced an audacious bit of skill to continue his high-scoring start to life in the Champions League in a 3-1 win over Sporting Lisbon earlier Tuesday.
Karl scored his third goal in four career Champions League games, controlling a pass from Konrad Laimer in mid-air before volleying a shot from a tight angle over two onrushing defenders and past the goalkeeper.
It was part of a 12-minute, three-goal turnaround for Bayern after Joshua Kimmich’s own-goal handed Sporting the lead after João Simões put Bayern under pressure on the counter.
Serge Gnabry leveled for Bayern when he was left unmarked at a corner in the 65th, before Karl scored Bayern’s second in the 69th and defender Jonathan Tah made it 3-1 in the 77th.
Widely viewed as German soccer’s best young talent this season, Karl became Bayern’s youngest-ever Champions League scorer in October on his first start in the competitions.
Late on, Alphonso Davies came off the bench for the Canadian left back’s first game since March after a serious knee injury.
Chelsea loses
Chelsea was beaten in the Champions League for the first time in nearly three months as Belgium forward Charles De Ketelaere set up the equalizer and scored an 83rd-minute winner as Atalanta came from behind to win 2-1.
Chelsea, which went ahead through Joao Pedro, dropped out of the top eight automatic qualifying spots with its second loss.
It was a fourth win for Atalanta, which climbed to third and is the highest-placed Italian team.
Gianluca Scamacca made it 1-1 by heading home a cross from De Ketelaere, who then drove in a shot that Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sanchez got a hand to but couldn’t keep out.
Koundé drives Barcelona comeback
Headers by Jules Koundé three minutes apart gave Barcelona a 2-1 comeback victory over Eintracht Frankfurt.
Marcus Rashford assisted in the first goal in the 50th and Lamine Yamal in the second in the 53rd.
The visitors had taken the lead with a goal by Ansgar Knauff in a 21st-minute breakaway at the renovated Camp Nou stadium, which still can’t hold full capacity.
Son watches Spurs win
Son Heung-min said a belated goodbye to Tottenham as his former club moved up to ninth after beating Slavia Prague 3-0 on an own goal and two penalties in a game overshadowed by a dispute over moving a rainbow flag showing support for the LGBTQ+ community.
Julián Alvarez scored for the ninth time in his last nine league-phase appearances to lead Atletico Madrid to a 3-2 come-from-behind win at PSV Eindhoven.
Marseille held on for a 3-2 win over Union Saint-Gilloise, whose players and fans twice celebrated what they thought were goals to level the score late on, only for both to be ruled out for narrow offsides on video review.
Folarin Balogun bundled the ball over the line from close range to give Monaco a 1-0 win over Galatasaray.
Olympiakos broke through a determined Kairat Almaty defense to take a 1-0 win in Kazakhstan and boost its hopes of qualifying for the knockout stages. Gelson Martins scored for the Greek side in the 73rd.
