Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on June 25, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 23, 2026
Add as preferred source on GoogleSpain's High Court upheld Rubiales' conviction for kissing Hermoso without consent at the 2023 World Cup, sparking debate on sexism.
MADRID (Reuters) -Spain's High Court on Wednesday upheld a verdict that found former soccer federation president Luis Rubiales guilty of sexual assault for an unsolicited kiss on the lips of national team player Jenni Hermoso at the 2023 World Cup in Sydney.
The court rejected multiple appeals against the conviction, reaffirming Rubiales kissed Hermoso without her consent during the medal ceremony after Spain's women had won the trophy, according to the ruling seen by Reuters.
Rubiales was fined over 10,000 euros ($11,592) and acquitted of coercion charges alongside three co-defendants. Prosecutors had sought a 2-1/2-year prison sentence and called for a retrial, both of which were dismissed.
The incident sparked widespread debate about sexism in Spanish society and women's football, fueling momentum for the "Me Too" movement in the country.
Rubiales argued that his actions were motivated by an uncontrollable joy, but the court ruled that his restraint with other players and attendees demonstrated he could have avoided such behaviour with Hermoso.
"Since that emotion did not lead him to express his joy so effusively by kissing the other players or the accompanying persons in the box, and he restrained himself, he could also have done so, without too much effort, with the captain of the team," the court said.
($1 = 0.8627 euros)
(Reporting by Emma Pinedo; editing by Charlie Devereux; Editing by Ken Ferris)
Luis Rubiales was convicted of sexual assault for an unsolicited kiss on the lips of national player Jennifer Hermoso during the medal ceremony.
The High Court rejected multiple appeals against the conviction, upholding the verdict that Rubiales kissed Hermoso without her consent.
The incident sparked widespread debate about sexism in Spanish society and women's football, fueling momentum for the 'Me Too' movement in the country.
Rubiales was fined over 10,000 euros and acquitted of coercion charges, although prosecutors had sought a 2-1/2-year prison sentence.
The court ruled that Rubiales' restraint with other players showed he could have avoided such behavior, undermining his argument that his actions were motivated by uncontrollable joy.
Explore more articles in the Headlines category
