Imagine you are in the office. You have done a good job. Everyone is satisfied. Suddenly the boss comes up to you, puts his head around you and plants a kiss on your lips. How would you have felt? What had you done? What if the culture at work was such that no one reacted? This was the situation of star player Jennifer Hermoso when Spain celebrated the World Cup title a week ago. Luis Rubiales, the president of the Spanish Football Federation, gave her the medal – and kissed her. – I didn’t like it, said Hermoso afterwards. She was not alone. The kiss has given us a style study in how a president – and the culture he has created – can destroy the world’s best women’s national team. Not good Rubiales has been head of Spain’s football association since 2018. It is the association that decides on the Spanish cups and national teams. When Spain won the World Cup, he didn’t just kiss Hermoso: He also gave captain Olga Carmona a kiss on the cheek. And he celebrated the title in the stands by taking to the crotch, right next to Queen Letizia and Princess Infanta Sofía, who is 16. For Rubiales, Hermoso’s kiss was perfectly fine. The same evening he said that those who had criticized it were “idiots”. UNPOPULAR: Luis Rubiales carried Spain player Athenea del Castillo Beivide during the World Cup gold celebration. Photo: DAVID GRAY / AFP But the worst part is that the players themselves did not consider the kiss as something they could do anything about. In the dressing room afterwards, the players’ celebration was streamed live online. In the video, Hermoso says that she “didn’t like” the kiss, but adds: – What was I supposed to do? Then she is asked by someone in the dressing room: – Did he use his tongue? Those who protest are punished Hermoso’s reaction did not mean that all was well. It wasn’t “just” a kiss. It’s not “the way they do it” in Spain. And although her reaction was apparently about physically not being able to do anything, it is the case that anyone who says anything back to Rubiales can be punished. Some of the players had tried it before, with terrible results. Last year, 15 players sent emails to the association demanding changes to the national team. They were critical of the management, facilities and resources. They talked about a culture that ignored their emotional health. In practice, they would get out the coach, Jorge Vilda, who had led the team for seven years. What did the union do? It threatened the players with bans of up to five years and said none of them would be allowed to play again until they apologized. Rubiales thus supported Vilda, who together with his powerful father voted for Rubiales in the 2018 election. FRIENDS: Spain’s national team manager Jorge Vilda and the president have supported each other in the past. Photo: MOLLY DARLINGTON / Reuters The response showed the players that Rubiales was the boss. That protests are of no use. Only three of the 15 returned to the national team, and the rest stayed at home during the WC. So when Hermoso had been kissed, the reaction was understandable. What was she supposed to do? Silence from Uefa Fortunately, people outside the association were able to react. The next day, i.e. on Monday, the criticism rained down on Rubiales. But it did not come from football’s leaders. Fifa and Uefa were silent. It was Spain’s politicians who intervened, among them Equality Minister Irene Montero, who called the kiss “sexual harassment”. Only then did Rubiales apologize – without actually saying sorry. He claimed that the kiss had been a natural thing, and apologized to whoever had felt hurt. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said the apology was not good enough. Then the football association published a message with quotes from Hermoso saying that the kiss was just a “spontaneous gesture”. The website Relevo has claimed that they invented the quotes, something the union denies. Then football took over for the politicians. Some Spanish clubs called for Rubiales to step down, as did the elite women’s league (Liga F) and two associations for footballers in Spain (AFE and FUTPRO). But Fifa? Uefa? Not a peep. Manipulative culture On Friday, the Spanish press expected Rubiales to resign. But in an incredible press conference, he attacked “fake feminism” and what he believed to be a witch hunt, claiming that Hermoso had given him permission to kiss her. Then he just as easily gave Vilda a new contract on the spot. Rubiales repeated time and time again: “I’m not leaving.” The union’s employees, including Vilda, sat in the hall and applauded. PRESS CONFERENCE: Rubiales refused to resign when “everyone” thought he would on Friday. Photo: RFEF / AP While journalists gaped, some male players finally reacted. Striker Borja Iglesias was the first to refuse national team play under Rubiales, before Isco and Héctor Bellerín slaughtered Rubiales’ behavior. All three play for Real Betis. Then Hermoso published a message in which she repeated that the kiss was involuntary. She talked about a “manipulative culture” in the union, and said that the kiss was part of a long list of situations that the players had had to tolerate over the years. – Such things have been a daily part of the national team for years, said Hermoso. So: It has been bad for a long time. Only now has she had the opportunity to say it. The Vice President So much had to happen before Hermoso himself felt comfortable criticizing Rubiales. Now the entire women’s national team has refused to play under the current management. Clubs and players from all over the world have supported Hermoso. A total of 11 people in the Spanish Football Association have resigned in protest. Both Vilda and Luis de la Fuente, the coach of the men’s national team, have now also criticized Rubiales, although they were among those who applauded the speech on Friday. PROTESTS: Outside the federal offices, people have turned up to protest against the president. Photo: ISABEL INFANTES / Reuters Fifa has suspended Rubiales for 90 days and refused him contact with Hermoso. It took its time. And Uefa? There, Rubiales is still one of six vice presidents. Amazingly, Rubiales has yet to give up. He says Hermoso agreed to be kissed, and threatens players with a lawsuit. This is the man who has ruled Spanish football – and the women’s national team – for five years. So much needs to be done The situation says a lot about the balance of power between presidents and players. There are few ways to remove the head of a football association, who in most countries is – and always has been – a man. It takes a lot, both at club and national teams, for a player to challenge a coach or president. In 2021, five male coaches were fired from the United States Women’s Elite League (NWSL) following allegations of sexual harassment, racism and unacceptable behavior. The incidents had been going on for many years before they came to light. Then you can wonder how many other women’s teams struggle with the culture around their coaches, and how many players out there want to say something, but don’t dare. It is still incredible that Fifa president Gianni Infantino said, just before the World Cup final, that it is the women who must “choose the right games” to achieve equality. Like men have a passive role in this process. Fortunately, the Spanish players have won this match against Rubiales. But it is worrying that so much is needed. They needed politicians, players’ associations, clubs, the press and fellow players with them to defeat one president and his coach. They needed proof of what Rubiales had done. And this is what is most disturbing. That if the kiss hadn’t been filmed, everything would have just continued as before.
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