The former Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) president Luis Rubiales has been handed a three-year ban from all football activity following the kiss controversy with Spanish footballer Jennifer Hermoso, FIFA announced on Monday.
Rubiales was called out by many top footballers and other top officials — including the Spanish government — after he kissed Hermoso during the presentation ceremony after the Spanish women's football team won their maiden Women's World Cup after beating England 1-0 in Australia.
Rubiales first insisted that the kiss was consensual but after some days, he apologised for his actions but the footballing fraternity didn't seem it enough and asked for his resignation, which he first denied but eventually ended up resigning from his position last month.
“The Fifa Disciplinary Committee has banned Luis Rubiales, the former president of the Spanish Football Association (RFEF), from all football-related activities at national and international levels for three years, having found that he acted in breach of article 13 of the Fifa Disciplinary Code," FIFA said in a statement.
“This case relates to the events that occurred during the final of the Fifa Women’s World Cup on 20 August 2023, for which Mr Rubiales had been provisionally suspended for an initial period of 90 days. Mr Rubiales has been notified of the terms of the Fifa Disciplinary Committee’s decision today.”
“In accordance with the relevant provisions of the Fifa disciplinary code, he has 10 days in which to request a motivated decision, which, if requested, would subsequently be published on legal.fifa.com. The decision remains subject to a possible appeal before the Fifa appeal committee.”
Jennifer Hermoso had not represented her country ever since the scandal to record her protest. However, she was called up for the UEFA Nation's League encounter with Italy on October 27, where the 33-year-old guided her side to a win with an 89th-minute winner.
It must be noted that the Hermoso incident was not the first time Rubiales did something that was way out of line as he is said to have harassed and humiliated his female colleague in the past.