Rubiales admits that he "made a mistake" but denies having assaulted or coerced Hermoso

San Fernando de Henares"I was wrong. I behaved like an athlete who achieves success, like one more of the group, and at that moment I should have been cold-blooded and played an institutional role. But that is why there is a crime, for nothing." This is how Luis Rubiales explained to the judge the kiss on the mouth he gave Jenni Hermoso during the celebration of the 2023 World Cup in Australia. Although he admitted that he "messed up", the man accused of sexual assault and coercion has limited his "mistake" to a slip of the tongue because he was the president of the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF). In no case, Rubiales has stated, can the kiss on the lips of the Spanish national team player be considered sexual assault.

The former president of the RFEF denied that he was forced and reiterated that he asked her permission in the seconds before. "I asked her 'Can I give you a kiss?'" and said "OK," he said. "She knows I asked her," replied Rubiales, who was "totally sure" that he received the approval of the Madrid player, contradicting the version of the footballer who in the first session of the oral hearing in the National Court denied having consented to it. The former president of the RFEF insisted on downplaying a "totally spontaneous" gesture and justified that grabbing her head to give her the kiss was not a way of forcing her but rather a movement comparable to "giving a hug."

Rubiales has argued that he did not receive any gesture of rejection –"He left laughing and patting me on the side several times"– and that in no case did he want to satisfy a sexual desire with the kiss. "We had won a World Cup, we were happy, content. It was a sign of affection for a person who inspired tenderness in me at a time when, within the joy, I was suffering from having missed a penalty," said the former president of the RFEF. To demonstrate that a kiss on the mouth has no sexual connotation for him and that he does it in moments of celebration, Rubiales has stated that he also refers to his daughters at special moments such as "New Year's Eve" or when "they pass all their subjects." Although Rubiales' daughters were initially supposed to testify as witnesses, his defense ended up renouncing it and have not given their version. "I would kiss many footballers," Rubiales said, and explained that he had a "very friendly relationship" with "four or five players," including Hermoso.

«'Can I give you a kiss?'»

To try to support their version, Rubiales' defense has called upon a deaf man to testify, who read the lips of the former RFEF president through a video posted on TikTok. David Morillo, who appeared by video conference accompanied by a sign language interpreter, said that from the analysis of the two seconds prior to the kiss he concluded that Rubiales asked Hermoso for permission saying: "Can I give you a kiss?" "Among the words kiss, little beak, pretty, a little, can you tell them apart by lip reading?" Hermoso's lawyer asked. Rubiales had stated during the investigation that he said "little beak". Morillo has established himself with "kiss" and Rubiales has confirmed that he used this other word. Asked about this change of version, the accused has justified that they are "synonymous words". The Prosecutor's Office has cast doubt on the expert's professionalism. Nor has any video been analysed in which Hermoso's lips can be read.

Denies coercion

Rubiales clung to the interview that Hermoso gave to Cope when he was still at the stadium shortly after the events to refute the accusations. In these first statements, the player explained that she did not expect the kiss, but was convinced that it would end up being an "anecdote." The former president of the RFEF has used this to affirm that the player changed her version and that, from the start, she experienced it the same as him. Hermoso justified these statements because she did not want the kiss to take away the prominence of the team's victory. According to Rubiales' version, she did not comment at any time on her discomfort and has denied, Unlike what some of her colleagues testified, that there was a hostile atmosphere towards the footballer during the celebration and the return by bus and by plane because she did not want to go out again to support the behavior of the former president of the RFEF.

Rubiales has denied having exercised any coercion and has attributed his nervousness to the fact that the father of another player, Olga Carmona, had just died, and he had to tell her before she found out through the networks. Unlike what other witnesses have said during the trial, the former president of the RFEF has assured that did not participate in the drafting of the statement that the Federation wanted to issue on behalf of Hermoso to reduce the accusations against him, nor did he harass the player. According to Rubiales, the "tension" to reduce the media pressure came from the communications team and the institutional heads of the RFEF. He has also assured that he did not manipulate his subordinates at the Federation to exert pressure against the player and her entourage, nor did Albert Luque, former sports director of the Spanish men's football team; Jorge Vilda, former women's coach, and Rubén Rivera, former marketing manager of the RFEF. The other three accused of coercion will testify on Wednesday.