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Spain's government has begun a move to oust suspended soccer chief Luis Rubiales, who ended a week of silence on Friday by insisting he was the victim of a smear campaign.
- Luis Rubiales has claimed "fake feminists" were attacking him
- Spain's soccer chief has been under fire after footage appeared to show and unsolicited kiss
- Spain won the Women's World Cup final in Sydney, the scene for Rubiales's controversy
Rubiales has come in for a storm of criticism and calls for his resignation over his behaviour during and after Spain's Women's World Cup triumph in Sydney.
Footage showed him kissing player Jenni Hermoso on the lips, which Hermoso said was unsolicited, and appeared to grab his crotch in a lewd victory gesture.
On Friday, a Spanish government legal panel handling sports issues opened a formal case against Rubiales — president of the Spanish Football Federation and a vice president of UEFA — over his conduct that was televised globally, making him a national embarrassment.
Spain is hoping to remove him independently of a FIFA process that has already suspended him provisionally.
The government panel will decide if Rubiales abused his authority by kissing Hermoso or damaged the image and reputation of Spain at a sporting event, as the government claims. He could be banned from office for two years.
"When the eyes of the world were played on our players, his acts caused damage to our sport and our country that is difficult to repair," Miquel Iceta, Spain's acting minister of culture and sport, said.
Following the decision by the panel, Rubiales made his first public statement since refusing to step down a week ago and claiming he was a victim of a "witch hunt" by "false feminists."
"I committed some evident mistakes, for which I sincerely repent," Rubiales said on Friday.
He insisted the kiss with Hermoso was "mutual, consensual and occurred in a moment of euphoria" — a characterisation that the player firmly denies.
He added he participated in FIFA's investigation as well as the federation's own internal probe.
"During all this time I have suffered an unprecedented lynching by news outlets and politicians that has completely marginalized me. Not just in Spain but internationally," he said in his statement published on X, formerly known as Twitter.
The decision by the panel, however, to consider Rubiales's acts as allegedly "serious" as opposed to "very serious" dealt a setback to the government.
If they had been deemed "very serious" charges, the government could have moved to declare him suspended from office until the panel rules on his case.
FIFA has already suspended Rubiales for 90 days while it carries out its disciplinary case, so the Spanish decision will have little immediate effect.
In a statement last Saturday, Hermoso said she considered herself the victim of abuse of power and accused the federation of trying to pressure her into supporting Rubiales.
The federation initially hit back by saying she was lying and it would take legal action against her. But following the FIFA suspension, the federation on Monday urged Rubiales to step down.
On Tuesday, the federation suspended Rubiales's wages and ordered him to return the federation car, his laptop and mobile phone.
Rubiales has been left with virtually no supporters. His mother staged a brief hunger strike in a church in southern Spain, demanding justice for her son and calling on Hermoso to rectify her stance.
Meanwhile, support for Hermoso from Spanish and international officials, athletes and celebrities was overwhelming.
On Friday, the president of the Spanish Olympic Committee, Alejandro Blanco, said he urged Rubiales "to say sorry, explain what he did and then, without doubt, consider resigning".
On Thursday, Spain women's star Aitana Bonmatí was voted best player of the year and used her acceptance speech at the UEFA awards ceremony to voice support for Hermoso.
"As a society, we cannot allow the abuse of power in a working environment or disrespect," Bonmatí said on stage in Monte Carlo. "To all women who are suffering the same thing as Jenni, we're with you."
There is no time limit for the legal panel to make a ruling in the case.
AP
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