'It was blown out of proportion' – Luis Rubiales blames political witch hunt for sexual assault conviction over Jenni Hermoso kiss after World Cup final

Former Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) president Luis Rubiales has claimed his sexual assault conviction for kissing Jenni Hermoso was the result of a political witch hunt, insisting the incident was “blown out of proportion.” The ex-RFEF chief broke his silence in a TV interview, defending his actions during Spain’s 2023 Women’s World Cup celebrations and alleging political motives behind his downfall.

Rubiales defends appeal and insists conviction was unfair

Rubiales has broken his long silence since being found guilty of sexual assault for kissing Spain international Hermoso after the 2023 Women’s World Cup final against England, describing the scandal as “distorted” and “politically driven.” Rubiales, who was forced to resign as RFEF president in September 2023, appeared on to promote his new book Killing Rubiales and discuss his appeal against the €10,800 fine and one-year restraining order issued by Spain’s High Court.

The former official was convicted in February 2025 of sexual assault for kissing Hermoso without consent during the medal ceremony in Sydney. He was acquitted of coercion, which related to claims that he pressured the player to publicly back his version of events.

Rubiales has consistently denied wrongdoing and confirmed he has lodged an appeal. “Yes, I have appealed the sentence. When there is a sentence, we all have an obligation to abide by it,” he said. “We believe this is not sexual assault, and we have the right to appeal. There was a tremendous, disproportionate modification. It was dubbed ‘non-consensual kissing.’ It has to reach the Supreme Court. There has to be sexual intent in the kiss. We have our arguments to say that there was a wrongful act, but not a crime.”

AdvertisementAFP‘It was a mistake, but blown out of proportion’ – Rubiales

Rubiales admitted the kiss was inappropriate but argued that the backlash and conviction were the result of exaggeration and “interests” beyond football.

“It was a mistake, I wasn’t right. From there to everything that’s been blown out of proportion, distorted, taken to the extreme… with certain interests. It’s more than I deserved,” he said. “I stand by it. I apologise, I apologise again. As president, I should have been more composed, more professional.

“I’m not apologising to Jenni Hermoso because I asked her and she said: ‘Okay’. Jenni and I know that what the ruling says isn’t true. It was a kiss of emotion, with no sexual connotation whatsoever. Jenni was a good friend, she missed a penalty… she helped us a lot in rebuilding the team. Jenni was my friend.”

Addressing claims of pressure on Hermoso to downplay the incident, Rubiales said: “I spoke to her on the plane. I told her that we should both come forward and say what we’ve said. She refused. It was said that there was pressure, and we requested the video to show that there was no such pressure, but the judge did not deem it appropriate to show the video.”

Rubiales blames politics and media for his downfall

The former Spanish football chief alleged that the controversy was fuelled by political motives, claiming he became a target of Spain’s left-wing government and media.

“I saw an immediate move by the far left in this country, with an immediate change of script,” he said. “Pedro Sanchez needed the support of the separatists to be sworn in [as prime minister], and he had to grant them amnesty. It suited him well to talk about something else. It was a smokescreen.

“Media outlets that receive significant funding from the league attacked me. I saw that the far left, with their hypocrisy of blowing a minor issue out of proportion… they were clearly after me.”

Getty Images‘I did it for my team’ – Rubiales on resignation

Rubiales also claims that he was pressured to resign or risk the entire federation staff being dismissed.

“An intermediary from the Secretary of State for Sport told me that if I didn’t resign, my entire team would be fired," he added. "That they would talk to FIFA and get involved at the civil level and do whatever it took to go after me and my whole team. I did it for the group of people who supported me. That’s why I resigned.”

With his appeal now before the Spanish Supreme Court, Rubiales insists he will continue to fight to clear his name. The scandal remains one of the most damaging episodes in the history of Spanish football, overshadowing Spain’s first-ever Women’s World Cup triumph and reshaping the country’s sporting and political landscape.