'At no time did I consent': Spain will refuse to play until Luis Rubiales resigns

The Spanish women’s team will not play squad matches until the federation leadership is changed, they said in a joint statement on Friday

Fri, 25 Aug, 2023 - 19:17

Ashifa Kassam

The Spanish women’s team will not play squad matches until the federation leadership is changed, they said in a joint statement on Friday, hours after Luis Rubiales hit out at “false feminism” and a “social assassination” of his character as he vowed to stay on as head of Spain’s football federation.

The embattled head of the federation has faced fierce criticism for days as well as a Fifa investigation after he grabbed forward Jenni Hermoso by the head and planted a kiss on her lips during the Women’s World Cup final trophy presentation.

The statement, published by players’ union Futpro, included Hermoso’s rebuttal of Rubiales’s assertion that the kiss was consensual.

“I want to clarify that, as was seen in the images, at no time did I consent to the kiss he gave me,” Hermoso said. “I do not tolerate my word being questioned and much less the invention of words I have not said.”

The joint statement says that the World Cup champions will not return to play for the national team as long as the leadership remains in place. Along with the 23 players from the World Cup squad, the statement was signed by dozens of other female football players.