- Rubiales Resigns as RFEF President and UEFA Vice-President
- Controversy Surrounding Resignation and Its Impact on Spanish Football
- Rubiales’ Defense and Legal Consequences for His Actions
In his speech at an extraordinary general assembly of Spain’s football federation (RFEF) last month, Luis Rubiales resolutely proclaimed, “I will not resign,” banging his fist on the podium to assert his position. However, seventeen days later he announced his resignation as federation president and vice-president of Uefa. Rubiales is authoritatively leaving the federation after announcing his resignation in an interview with Piers Morgan, a clip of which was posted online before Tuesday’s broadcast of their complete conversation.
The resignation statement issued by Rubiales was entirely predictable. There was no apology, no mention of Jenni Hermoso, the player he grabbed and kissed during the medal ceremony following Spain’s World Cup victory in Sydney last month, no mention of the other players who contributed to that remarkable accomplishment, and no admission of wrongdoing.
“I believe in the truth and will do everything in my power to ensure its triumph,” he wrote. He is attempting to abandon his position as an innocent man who should face no further consequences for his actions.
Rubiales’ resignation is not in support of the development of the women’s game but rather it is in support of the men’s game, and specifically Spain’s ambition of hosting the 2030 World Cup.
Rubiales’ resignation letter makes this point abundantly obvious.
“There are influential parties who will prohibit my return. I do not want this disproportionate campaign against me to affect Spanish football,” he wrote.
“I make this decision after confirming that my departure will contribute to the stability that will allow Europe and Africa to continue working together in pursuit of the 2030 dream, which would bring the world’s largest sporting event to our country.”
In other words, do not judge Spain’s male players negatively based on how I have treated Spain’s female players.
Rubiales may not have mentioned Hermoso or any other Spanish female footballer in the interview footage or resignation statement with Morgan, but he did mention his daughters. The fact that this has become Rubiales’ standard defense against the “false feminism” he claims to be a victim of is hardly surprising.
“My daughters, my family, and the people who love me have suffered the effects of an exaggerated prosecution, and many falsehoods,” Rubiales wrote in his statement, and this sort of behavior – using his family as a shield and a lever to play the victim – reveals Rubiales’ character more deeply than his uninvited kiss in Sydney does.
Fifa suspended Rubiales “from all football-related activities at national and international level” for an initial period of 90 days, but he has so far evaded punishment from football’s governing bodies.
After Hermoso filed a criminal complaint against him, accusing the 46-year-old of sexual assault, he could face legal consequences. A prosecutor also complained about Rubiales with Spain’s highest court last week, citing concerns that he could be charged with sexual assault and coercion.
What impact Rubiales’s decision to step down will have on Spanish football, and specifically Spanish women’s football, is currently the central concern. In his resignation letter, he implied that he only agreed to do so after receiving assurances that the federation would continue on the path he established during his tenure as leader. If this is the case, then his departure will have the same positive effect as putting a bandage on a doomed ship.
Spanish football has undergone historic upheavals in the previous three weeks, with long-term effects. Rubiales’ departure is a start, but women’s football at all levels needs substantial reform.
