Jenni Hermoso’s statement to Spanish authorities on the kiss-gate affair involving former Spanish FA President Luis Rubiales has been made public following the broadcast of her evidence on television.
During the medal ceremony for the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, the former head of the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) kissed Hermoso on the lips.
The player underlined that she “did not enjoy” the encounter and insisted that she did not grant consent. Rubiales eventually resigned from his position and was issued a restraining order against Hermoso.
Rubiales, who has constantly claimed that the kiss was consensual, is today facing sexual assault and coercion charges.
The Spain star has now delivered a statement to Spanish investigators, revealing the Federation’s pressure on her in the aftermath of the incident.
“The kiss was never consenting. They harmed my reputation; I felt as a Federation player and employee that no one was looking out for me. “They were asking me to protect them, to help them, but I never felt like no one was protecting me,” she claimed to Marca.
“I was a little nervous.” I would never have allowed myself to start crying in a corner so that “everyone asked ‘what’s going on?'” It was time to rejoice. I also had to keep my teammates safe.
“I don’t deserve to have gone through all of this.” It’s been quite difficult for me to be unable to leave the house. I had to leave Madrid to avoid the pressure from people who simply wanted to hurt me. Why do I have to suppress my emotions? or crying alone in a room when I’ve done nothing?”
“We were at the final ceremony,” she stated, describing the kissing encounter in full. They handed me the medal, I greeted the Queen, hugged her daughter, and then it was Rubiales’ turn. He jumped on me, and I remained firm to encourage him. He told me, “We won this World Cup because of you,” and the next thing I knew, his hands were on my head. I couldn’t see anything else than myself with the kiss on the lips.
“The only thing I hear when I go up is that.” He kissed me and I didn’t hear anything else. I wasn’t expecting it. How could I have expected it after being world champions? There was a lot of happiness, but I didn’t seek it out or do anything to make it happen. “I saw myself in that moment, and when I went down to the stage, I told my colleagues about it.”
When questioned if there were any witnesses to the incident, she replied, “I immediately told Alexia Putellas and Irene Paredes.”
“We were champions, a historical fact that cost us our lives, and I never expected that to happen.” It was a trustworthy individual who hugged the Queen and her daughter. No one would have expected him to do something like that, no matter how spontaneous it was.I had no time to react.
“It was only seconds before I ran down to the stage [where the World Cup is held] with my teammates.” The first thing I told Alexia and Irene was, “Hey, he kissed me.” But what do you think, they replied. ‘Yes, yes, really strong,’ she says.
Hermoso then went on to describe what happened after she returned to the changing room.
“We returned to begin the festivities. We were world champions! At the time, my thought was, ‘I cannot steal any kind of focus from the momentous event that just happened.’ I didn’t believe I deserved to protect all of my teammates. It is worthwhile to behave differently. It was putting them in situations where they had no fault, such as myself.
“There was champagne and beer… the whole thing was a little crazy.” I pushed through it and continued to have fun with my teammates. I didn’t want to be sorry for missing out on that moment. “I told my teammates what I was feeling, but I hadn’t seen the image of the video or what was being said,” she explained.
Rubiales visited the dressing room to speak with the team, according to Hermoso, and even discussed the ‘kiss’ with her.
“When we see the images, we wonder, ‘Has this been real?'” I was completely taken aback. I was in the changing room when Ana Alvarez walked in. She informed me that the president had called and requested that I come out. ‘Jenni, the kiss, there’s a lot of discussion…’ he began. ‘You don’t have to tell me anything, you’re going to believe what’s happened,’ I informed him.
“‘I need to say something in the locker room,’ he said. ‘Could you please tell me whether I can come in?’ It happened, and he was fully aware of what was going on. When we arrived, he briefly changed the subject. He informed us that we had won a free holiday to Ibiza. I was already feeling a little uneasy. He had me by the shoulder the entire time and began to claim that we had paid for the trip to Ibiza. “People began shouting and continued to celebrate,” she explained.
