Forced kiss affair: “I can’t understand how this could be qualified as sexual assault”, Luis Rubiales defends himself on Spanish television

Luis Rubiales assure ne pas avoir exercé de pression sur Jenni Hermoso. Capture d'écran Twitter (X). – Capture d'écran Twitter (X).

The former president of the Spanish Football Federation Luis Rubiales said he could not "understand" that the facts can be qualified as sexual assault on the player Jenni Hermoso.

The former president of the Spanish Football Federation Luis Rubiales assured that he never exerted pressure on the player Jenni Hermoso in the so-called "forced kiss", also claiming not to "be able to understand" that the facts can be qualified as sexual assault.

"No one will be able to demonstrate that a member of the Federation committed an act of coercion" on Jenni Hermoso, launched Luis Rubiales in an interview broadcast Wednesday evening on the channel The Sexta.

Rubiales, sobre su beso a Jenni Hermoso: "Se produce entre dos amigos y después de una pregunta. Ella me dice: vale"#ObjetivoRubiales pic.twitter.com/Rl6g7nz8XZ

— laSexta (@laSextaTV) April 3, 2024

The prosecution recently demanded two and a half years in prison against the former strongman of Spanish football, paving the way for a probable trial: one year for sexual assault, for kiss on the lips imposed on Jenni Hermoso just after Spain's victory in the World Cup final on August 20, and a year and a half in prison for coercion, an offense which refers to the "pressures"exercised on the player to convince her to say that the kiss had been consensual, according to the accusation.

"A relationship of trust and friendship"

Three other people from the Federation are being prosecuted in this case for the same offense of coercion. "I cannot understand how this could be qualified of sexual assault", Luis Rubiales also declared on La Sexta.

The kiss took place "after winning a World Cup, between two friends, that's what Mrs. Hermoso said, who shared a relationship of trust and friendship", he continued.

Assuring again that he had asked Jenni Hermoso if he could kiss her before doing so, Luis Rubiales insisted: "A sexual attacker does not ask the question, and he does not’ ;there was no sexual context.

"I have a clear conscience, things have taken on exaggerated proportions"

According to Luis Rubiales, Jenni Hermoso initially gave no importance to this kiss, before changing her mind under pressure. "I have a clear conscience, things have taken on exaggerated proportions", he concluded.

For her part, Jenni Hermoso, who despite herself became a global symbol of the fight against sexual violence, said she "felt vulnerable and victim […] of an impulsive and sexist act, inappropriate and without any consent on (his) part.

Since a recent reform of the Spanish Penal Code, a non-consensual kiss can be considered sexual assault, a criminal category that includes all types of sexual violence, including rape.

Luis Rubiales' kiss on the mouth of the Spanish number 10 in front of the cameras of the whole world, a few minutes after the triumph of "la Roja& quot; August 20 in Sydney caused a wave of indignation in Spain and abroad, forcing Mr. Rubiales to resign the following month.< /p>