February 24 – The Court of Arbitration for Sport has dismissed an appeal by disgraced former Spanish FA boss Luis Rubiales against his three-year FIFA ban for kissing Jenni Hermoso on the lips at the medal ceremony after the 2023 Women’s World Cup final.
Rubiales was found guilty last week in the Spanish courts and fined more than €10,000 and has now suffered the double whammy of having his suspension from the game rubber-stamped.
Rubiales initially appealed the ban to FIFA’s own appeals committee but that was rejected in January 2024. He then took his case to CAS, sport’s highest court.
A CAS statement confirmed it had dismissed the appeal, ruling that the imposed sanction was “reasonable and proportional”.
“The CAS panel determined that the behaviour of Mr Rubiales at the final of the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 constituted multiple and serious violations of the FIFA disciplinary code (art.13) and saw no reason to consider the sanction to be disproportionate. The appeal by Mr Rubiales is dismissed and the contested decision is maintained.”
Rubiales coming back for more
Rubiales is not stopping there, having now also appealed the verdict by the courts after consistently insisting that the kiss was consensual.
He and three other RFEF employees – the former Spain women’s coach Jorge Vilda, ex-RFEF sporting director Albert Luque and former marketing director Ruben Rivera – were acquitted of the charge of coercion for allegedly trying to pressure Hermoso into saying publicly that the kiss was consensual.
In an additional twist to the ‘kissgate’ scandal, Hermoso is also reported to be appealing against the leniency of the sentence handed down to Rubiales after prosecutors unsuccessfully sought a prison term of two-and-a-half years.
In a brief statement after the judgement, she commented on social media: “After everything, this will create an important precedent in a social environment where there is still much to be done. I have my heart full with each of the people who have been, are, and will continue with me in this fight.”
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