In light of the investigation instigated by Spain‘s top sports court into his unsolicited kiss on player Jenni Hermoso, Luis Rubiales, the suspended president of the football federation, said he is determined to prove his innocence and reveal the truth.
‘I will continue to defend myself to prove the truth,’ he said in a statement issued by El Mundo, a national daily in Spain, on Friday. This happens to be his first public remark since August 25.
‘I want to send a message to all the good people in our country and beyond our borders, including those women who have really been attacked and who have my full support and understanding: this is not about gender, it is about truth,’ he said.
Luis Rubiales, who faced a 90-day provisional suspension from FIFA following his kiss with Hermoso after Spain’s Women’s World Cup final victory, is now the focus of an investigation by Spain’s sports court. Additionally, the country’s primary criminal court has opened a preliminary inquiry into the incident.
Read more: Spanish Football Federation Finally Asks Rubiales To Resign
During his time in Sydney, the federation chief apologized for his behaviour but stood by his conviction that the kiss was consensual. In contrast, Hermoso maintains that it was not and describes her experience as feeling like a ‘victim of an assault.’
‘On August 20, I made some obvious mistakes, for which I sincerely, from the heart, regret,’ Rubiales noted in his statement.
‘I’ve learned that no matter how great the joy and how deep the emotion, even when you win a World Cup, sports leaders should be held to exemplary behaviour, and mine was not so.’
Rubiales hammered on the kiss being ‘a mutual and consensual act’ with ‘overflowing jubilation on both sides’.
The 46-year-old said he is confident that in the end justice would prevail.
‘I still have confidence in the independence of the bodies where this matter should be resolved, despite the political pressure and the interest-driven brutality of certain media outlets,’ added Rubiales.
‘Although information about this matter is being subjected to numerous manipulations, lies, and censorship, the truth has only one path, and that’s why I repeat, I trust that justice will be served.’
The Spanish football federation’s territorial presidents made a formal request last week for Rubiales to resign from his role. Concurrently, more than 80 women’s players have commenced a strike from the national team.