Court hands win to defiant Spanish football chief
over government
Madrid’s administrative mechanisms are failing to
force Luis Rubiales’ ouster despite forced kiss with World Cup winner Jenni
Hermoso.
BY AITOR
HERNÁNDEZ-MORALES
SEPTEMBER
1, 2023 8:41 PM CET
Spain’s
highest court which deals with issues related to sports law on Friday decided
football federation President Luis Rubiales’ forced kiss with forward Jenni
Hermoso did not constitute a “very grave” violation of Spanish law.
By opening
an investigation into Rubiales for only a “grave” violation, as opposed to a
more serious breach of the country’s Sports Law, the Administrative Tribunal
for Sport made it impossible for the autonomous government agency that oversees
all sporting activities in Spain to suspend the disgraced federation chief
until a final verdict is issued.
Secretary
of State for Sport Víctor Francos, who presides over the country’s High Council
for Sport, told Spanish media that the body would nonetheless request the court
suspend Rubiales provisionally.
The
tribunal’s decision is a serious blow to Spain’s caretaker left-wing coalition
government. Over the course of the week Deputy Prime Minister Teresa Ribera,
Equality Minister Irene Montero and Culture and Sport Minister Miquel Iceta
vowed Madrid would take action to ensure that Rubiales would get the boot as
soon as possible.
For now,
only the 90-day suspension imposed by global football governing body FIFA’s
disciplinary committee prevents Rubiales from presiding over the football
federation. If FIFA decides to not take further action, the Spaniard could
theoretically resume his position at the end of November.
But the
country’s administrative mechanisms have proven inefficient and the national
football federation is unwilling to take action on its own. Rather than censure
and fire Rubiales, regional federation presidents earlier this week opted to
request the FA boss’ resignation, days after he defiantly announced he was
going nowhere.
Similar
efforts to remove Jorge Vilda, the head coach of the country’s national women’s
team who was seen cheering Rubiales on during the fiery speech in which he
decried “the scourge of false feminism,” have also have gone nowhere.
Although
Spain’s World Cup-winning women’s football team stated it will not play under
his leadership, and his entire technical staff has resigned, the coach
officially remains in post.
Luis de la
Fuente, the head coach of Spain’s national men’s football team, on Friday
similarly declined to resign his post despite public outcry over the standing
ovation he gave Rubiales after his tirade against political correctness.
The coach
did, however, apologize for his “inexcusable” applause, for which he said he
deserved to be criticized.
“Anyone who
knows me knows that these gestures do not represent my values, nor my way of
thinking or acting in life,” de la Fuente said. “I have always been on the side
of equality and respect.”
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