The President of the Royal Spanish Football Federation is stepping down after weeks of pressure following his allegedly unwanted kiss with Spanish forward Jenni Hermoso, he revealed Sunday to Piers Morgan.
Luis Rubiales was suspended after kissing the soccer player on the lips following Spain’s victory in the Women’s World Cup.
Initially refusing to resign, Rubiales referred to his critics as “false feminists,” before ultimately ceding to them, announcing his resignation in an exclusive interview with Piers Morgan.
BREAKING: Luis Rubiales has sensationally resigned as President of the Royal Spanish Football Federation following the scandal over him kissing Spain’s Jenni Hermoso at the Women’s World Cup Final. He revealed the news in a world exclusive interview for @PiersUncensored pic.twitter.com/Kl2uQTOzqv
— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) September 10, 2023
“About my resignation, yes, I’m going to do,” Rubiales told Piers Morgan “You’re going to resign?” Morgan asked. “Yes, because I cannot continue my work,” Rubalies said.
Rubiales cited his daughters, his father and conversations with friends as the reasons for his change of heart. “They say to me, ‘Luis, now you have to focus on your dignity and continue your life, because if not, probably you are going to damage people you love'” he told Morgan. (RELATED: Coors Light Giving Entire City Of Miami Free Beer After Lionel Messi)
Rubalies gave the allegedly unwanted smooch immediately following the World Cup in late August. He received a steady stream of backlash, including from Spain’s deputy Prime Minister, but the tipping point came when Hermoso filed a formal complaint with prosecutors in early September.
🚨💣 A scandal explodes in Spain because the president of the Spanish football federation, Luis Rubiales, kissed Jenni Hermoso, striker of Spain. [@RMCsport] pic.twitter.com/zdKBBxyRXR
— Football Talk (@FootballTalkHQ) August 20, 2023
Rubiales insisted the kiss was consensual, saying, “It was a spontaneous kiss, mutual, euphoric and consensual. That’s the key,” according to ESPN.
Hermoso disagreed. “I want to clarify that at no time did I consent to the kiss he gave me,” she said, according to Spanish media. “I do not tolerate my word being questioned, much less that words are invented that I have not said.”