The National Court will judge Luis Rubiales for the kiss with Jenni Hermoso in February 2025

The Prosecutor’s Office requests 2 years and 6 months for him for a crime of sexual assault and for a crime of coercion

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The National Court will judge from February 3, 2025 and until the 19th of that same month the former president of the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) Luis Rubiales for the kiss on the mouth that he gave to the player of the Spanish National Team Jenni Hermoso after winning the World Cup held in Sydney (Australia).

This is stated in an ordering procedure, collected by Europa Press, in which it is noted that the oral hearing will be held at the headquarters of the National Court in San Fernando de Henares and that it is expected to last 11 days. Given the nature of the crimes, the matter will be heard by the magistrate of the Central Criminal Court of the National Court.

It should be remembered that in addition to Rubiales, the former women’s coach Jorge Vilda, the former sports director of the national team Albert Luque and the former head of Marketing Rubén Rivera are also being judged. The latter were prosecuted for her possible participation in the alleged coercion of the player and her entourage after the kiss.

The Prosecutor’s Office of the National Court requests a sentence of 2 years and 6 months for Rubiales for a crime of sexual assault – for the non-consensual kiss – and for a crime of coercion as the perpetrator.

“UNILATERAL AND SURPRISE”

It was at the end of January of this year when the investigating judge Francisco de Jorge proposed trying Rubiales, considering that the kiss he gave Hermoso “was not consensual” and that the former leader acted in a “unilateral and surprising” manner.

In his car he stated that “the pressures to which the player was subjected created” in the women’s national team player “a situation of anxiety and intense stress.”

Regarding the other defendants, De Jorge explained that he also proposed trying them for the subsequent pressure to which the player was subjected to make her agree to hold a public demonstration stating that the kiss had been consensual.

The judge assured that there was “a concerted action of the three” defendants – Vilda, Luque and Rivero – agreed with Rubiales “to break Hermoso’s will and get him to agree to record a video in which he said that the kiss had been spoiled”.

Regarding the kiss, the magistrate assured that “the erotic purpose or not or the state of euphoria and agitation experienced as a consequence of the extraordinary sporting triumph” achieved with the achievement of the Soccer World Cup “are elements whose concurrence and legal consequences must be assessed in the oral and public trial before the body in charge of prosecution”.

As he explained, “kissing on the lips affects the sphere of intimacy reserved for sexual relations, particularly in the context of two adults.”

It should be remembered that the instructor was investigating Rubiales for the crimes of sexual assault and coercion. However, in his letter the magistrate did not propose trying them for any of these crimes, ensuring that “it is not necessary for the instructor to make a detailed qualification, nor for the specific criminal types to be specified.”

In the opinion of the instructor, “the order establishes in a general way some facts that are broad enough to give a flexible margin to the accusations” so that they are the ones who, in their respective indictments, specify the crimes for which they must be tried.

THE MOMENT OF THE KISS

In his order to move to an abbreviated procedure, the judge also gave an account of the events that occurred on August 20, 2023 in Sydney, on the occasion of the awarding of medals to the players of the Spanish team.

At that moment Hermoso received the protocol greeting and congratulations from the then president of the RFEF, who held the player’s head with both hands, at ear level, “and in a surprising and unexpected way he placed a kiss on her lips.” the player, who was not aware of the defendant’s intention to kiss her on the lips nor did she give her consent to do so.

The magistrate stated that Hermoso, disconcerted and surprised by the unexpected kiss on the lips, did not have time to react. The player, at first, tried to downplay its importance and continue celebrating the historic triumph of the National Team.

“However, as the hours went by, the euphoria of the triumph gave way to discomfort and the feeling of having been offended by the action reported, discomfort that increased due to pressure from Rubiales and his close circle to publicly express that the kiss had been consensual,” he added.

In this context, the magistrate continued pointing out that on “the flight back to Spain, Rubiales tried to get Hermoso to agree to make a public demonstration with him to say that the kiss had been consensual, to which the player refused, expressing their discomfort”.

After asking his technical team for advice, Rubiales would have asked the then women’s coach, Jorge Vilda, to speak with the soccer player’s brother to convince her to participate in making a video with the intended content.

“Next, Vilda looked for her brother on the plane and, in the course of the conversation, warned him that if her sister did not agree to participate in the video, her refusal would have negative consequences for her and she would experience harm in her professional career as footballer,” the judge noted.

PRESSURE TO EXCULP RUBIALES

Once in Spain, and at the request of Rubiales, Rubén Rivera, marketing manager of the Federation and in charge of the logistics of the team’s trip to Ibiza, asked Hermoso, repeatedly and persistently, to speak by phone with the responsible for the integrity of the entity.

Rivera, always according to the judge’s story, insisted that he had to participate in the video exonerating Rubiales. The athlete, however, informed him that she did not want to talk about this topic.

“Despite Hermoso’s clear refusal, with an expression of his exhaustion, Rivera repeatedly insisted that he speak with Luque, also with the intention of insisting that he participate in the video,” the magistrate continued.

It was then that Hermoso responded to Luque on WhatsApp, again refusing to speak with him. After her refusal, Rivera insisted again through a friend of Hermoso’s to convince her that she had to talk to Luque.

When the player said no, Luque showed up at the hotel trying to force Hermoso to talk to him to convince her to participate in the video. She insisted through WhatsApp to the player and also personally to Hermoso’s friend to talk to him.

After his unsuccessful attempts, Luque sent a WhatsApp message to Hermoso’s friend, insisting on his request for help to justify Rubiales’ behavior. In that message she expressed her anger, “accusing her of being a bad person, wishing her that she finds herself very alone in her life and announcing that she will be happy if that happens.”

The magistrate concluded his order by stating that “the pressures to which the player was subjected created a situation of anxiety and intense stress in Hermoso.”