Luis Rubiales, the suspended Spanish football chieftain is set for a time in prison as Jenni Hermoso, the female football player involved in the kiss saga has accused him of sexual assault for kissing her on the lips without her consent.
Rubiales has been in the news for kissing a Spanish women’s football player after La Roja’s victory over the Three Lionesses of England at the concluded Women’s World Cup final on Sunday, August 20, 2023, in Sydney, Australia.
According to the Associated Press, “The prosecutor’s office in Madrid said that, according to a sexual consent law passed last year, Rubiales could face a fine or a prison sentence of one to four years if found guilty.
The new law eliminated the difference between “sexual harassment” and “sexual assault,” sanctioning any unconsented sexual act.”
Though Rubiales, the now-suspended president of the Spanish soccer federation, has insisted the kiss was consensual, Hermoso has denied that in statements issued by her and her players’ union.
Hermoso, also said she and her family were pressured by the federation to show her support for Rubiales in the immediate aftermath of the scandal caused by the kiss that tarnished her team’s victory.
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This is coming at a time when the football fraternity image is being tarnished with reports of various kinds of sexual assaults that leave the fans wondering what is going on in the industry.
Recently, Anthony Santos of Manchester United was accused by his former girlfriend of sexual assault.
The Brazilian playmaker is blacklisted for the country’s matches for the September international break.
Prior to that, there were cases involving Benjamin Mendy of Manchester City and Mason Greenwood of Manchester United, both players were discharged and acquitted by the law courts.
However, nothing was said nor done to the women behind the saga. They were neither reprimanded nor fined for raising false accusations if so, against their male folks.
Funny enough, the woman who accused Greenwood is still living with him and even has a baby for him now.
There is a great need to find out why Rubiales picked on Hermoso for a kiss, Is she the most beautiful of the women players, or is there any kind of unholy amorous relationship going on before the kiss?
Or could there be a possible behind-the-scenes love affair in the players’ camp and possibly in other women’s football camps that was taken too far by Rubiale’s action?
Was Rubiales possibly exercising his masculinity against a feasible and poor female player who was at his disposal?
As it is said in some quarters, “If a man is given a female slave as a wife, such a man would never know the value of a woman.”
The unanswered question brings to the fore, the question, who is killing our football, the players, administrators or the women in both lives?
Unfortunately, FIFA is not doing enough to checkmate atrocities found in football circles.
If the ‘Rubiales sex-gate’ were to be in some of the developing countries where football is more of a means of economic survival, than a game, the incident would have been killed overnight as the player would have been considered fortunate enough to been kissed by the FA boss.
This is obviously a very negative trend evolving in the system with supposedly disciplined and morally upright personnel as managers cum administrators.
Read also: 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup in numbers
In Nigeria, the FA has been accused of owing the Super Falcons for a long time now.
If the FA could hold back the players’ money without blinking an eye, a kiss no doubt is a favour, whether consented to or otherwise.
After all, he who pays the piper dictates the tone, they say. The national assembly was seen probing the FA.
One is tempted to ask, what is the basis of probing a person when there is no law against the act?
The time has come for Nigerian lawmakers to enact laws against such corrupt acts as seen in the country’s football family.
Those who lead or manage football, one of the world’s greatest economic sectors should be seen to be morally disciplined.
Hence, BusinessDay calls on FIFA to sanitise the game before the ‘shylock’ lords choke the fun in the game.
