Will Rubiales saga lead to systemic change in Spanish football?

By Emre Asikci

ISTANBUL (AA) – It was a kiss that shocked the world and shook Spanish football to the core at a time when it should have been celebrating a historic Women’s World Cup win.

Luis Rubiales, president of the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF), crossed a line in front of thousands of people, kissing forward Jenni Hermoso on the lips during the celebrations.

That and what followed was “a perfect example of a pattern of behavior that has been deeply entrenched” in Spanish football, according to Semra Hunter, a football expert and broadcast journalist who has closely followed the case.

For weeks, Rubiales resisted calls to resign, insisting that the kiss was mutual, even after Hermoso said it was not consensual and filed a legal complaint against him.

He even had support from the federation, which initially said “he was the victim” and accused Hermoso of “spreading falsehoods and lies,” Hunter told Anadolu in a video interview.

“They even went so far as to say that they were going to sue her. They were going to take legal action against her,” she said.

But the global attention that the incident drew made sure that the pressure became too much for Rubiales, who announced earlier this week that he was stepping down.

“Eventually, just about everybody came on the side of Jenni Hermoso in Spain, from wider society to mainstream media, to sports media, to the government. Everybody was in her corner,” said Hunter.

A key reason for the strong reaction was “because it was a reflection of so much what happens across Spanish society in other workplaces,” she said.

As for Spanish football, she said female players had been “openly speaking about the systemic issues within the federation for years.”

“They’ve openly been speaking about the fact that this was a perfect example of a pattern of behavior that has been deeply entrenched and in place for a very long time from the top down,” she said.

“And how they have systematically been receiving abuse, manipulation, they’ve been controlled, they’ve been silenced, they’ve been humiliated.”

Hunter said people are now listening to others, particularly women, explain “why this was such a big deal or why it was not simply just a kiss; that it was really a symbol of something so much bigger than that.”

- Checkered past

This is not the first controversy for Rubiales, the 46-year-old who has been head of the RFEF since 2018.

In 2020, he was in court over accusations that he assaulted an architect – a woman – who was renovating his house. He won the case and later claimed that he was the victim of harassment and blackmail.

Then there was the 2022 story by Spanish news outlet El Confidencial that accused Rubiales of having recorded compromising phone calls and conversations with government officials, claims that the RFEF denied on his behalf.

That same year, Rubiales faced allegations from his uncle and former chief of staff that he used the federation’s money to organize private parties, which were often of a sexual nature.

The RFEF rejected the accusations and took legal action against the accuser, eventually winning the case.

Last year was also the one when 15 players of the Spanish women’s team took a stand for better working conditions, including a more professional structure and approach.

The players also raised concerns about the management methods of coach Jorge Vilda, who was also recently sacked in the aftermath of the World Cup incident.

At the time, Rubiales put out a statement accusing the players of trying to pressure the RFEF, threatening them with lengthy bans.

During his tenure as the federation’s chief, Rubiales has also had disputes with other top officials, including La Liga President Javier Tebas.

Even in the World Cup celebrations, the kiss was not Rubiales’ only controversial act.

“There was the crotch-grabbing that he did in the presidential box, when he was standing next to the queen of Spain and her 16-year-old daughter … Later in the presentation, he was kissing other players on the cheeks and throwing them over his shoulders, touching them inappropriately,” said Hunter.

“A lot of the media in Spain have been talking about the history of Luis Rubiales as an individual and bringing up once more a lot of the scandals and controversies related to him.”

On Friday, he appeared in a Spanish court to face charges of sexual assault and coercion, with the court due to decide if the case will go to trial.

Spain’s progressive coalition government enacted a groundbreaking law last August to bolster legal protections for sexual assault victims.

Under the “Only Yes is Yes” law, his kiss on Hermoso’s lips could be seen as a sexual assault offense, and he could have to pay a fine or even face jail if convicted.

Incidents like this are “precisely why this law was put into place,” said Hunter.

“It has to do with consent. If you do not give someone that consent to kiss you … it’s considered a crime, it’s considered an act of sexual aggression, and you can go to jail,” she said.

- A turning point?

The bigger question now in Spain is whether this case could actually lead to some sort of reckoning with sexism in football and spark systemic reforms.

Hunter said the demand for change has been strong in the wake of Rubiales’ antics, but “it really hasn’t happened in the last three weeks.”

“A lot of people in wider society, not just within the football industry or football fans, are also demanding that there are systemic changes within the federation … that people who are in power, who have been abusing their power … who have been enabling Rubiales and people like him to behave in such a manner, that all of them have to go,” she said.

She said that while “a couple of pieces” like Rubiales and Vilda are gone, the actual changes need to be “deeper” and “much more meaningful than that.”

Hunter also pointed out that Spanish women footballers remain highly skeptical of the federation’s intent.

“They have much more experience in connection with all of this because they live through it. They will tell you that they don’t believe the federation, that they have to demand for more changes,” she said.

After initially supporting Rubiales, the RFEF and its officials made a “180 U-turn and turned their backs” on him, claiming that they would work “to bring about wholesale changes within the organization,” she said.

“It’s really hard to believe that to be true because these are the same people who share the same philosophy and the mindset as Rubiales, and many of them are close friends and allies,” said Hunter.

“And so maybe publicly, they’re turning their backs on him. But the question is privately, do they still feel the same way? Are they still friends? Are they still supporting him? We don’t really know.”

Still, Hunter added, she and many others are hoping that this could bring about a wider and more meaningful shift.

“I hope it’s the moment for systematic change, and for this to be a turning point, because that’s what the women have been asking for,” she said.

The changes so far have been “largely cosmetic ... so more has to happen,” she concluded.