Former Spanish football federation (RFEF) president Luis Rubiales will stand trial for his forcible kiss on the lips of Women’s World Cup winner Jenni Hermoso, a High Court in Spain has declared.
“Rubiales will be tried for the non-consensual kissing of Spanish national team player Jennifer Hermoso at the end of the World Cup final in Sydney on August 20, 2023, and for the subsequent coercion exerted to make her say publicly that it was consensual,” the court said in a statement outlining the allegations on Wednesday.
The trial will be held at the Audiencia Nacional, a Madrid court in charge of complex cases, on a date yet to be set, Judge Francisco de Jorge said in the court document.
Public prosecution has requested a sentence of two-and-a-half years in prison for Rubiales – one year for sexual assault and 18 months for coercion.
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The prosecution is also asking for two years’ probation once the sentence has been served and for him to pay 50,000 euros ($54,000) in compensation to the player.
Judge De Jorge asked Rubiales to post bail of 65,000 euros ($70,000) within 24 hours to cover “any civil liabilities he may be ordered to pay”, according to AFP.
The judge also confirmed that former La Roja women’s coach Jorge Vilda and two former federation officials would also face trial for alleged coercion of Hermoso.
Rubiales, 46, provoked worldwide outrage by giving Hermoso an unsolicited kiss during the medal ceremony after Spain defeated England to win the World Cup in Australia in 2023.
FIFA later imposed a three-year ban on the ex-Spanish football president.
The former RFEF chief, also under investigation in a separate alleged corruption case involving his reign at the federation, has denied any wrongdoing.
