FIFA to push for Luis Rubiales to be BANNED from football for 15 years

EXCLUSIVE: FIFA to push for Luis Rubiales to be BANNED from football for 15 years after Spanish FA turn on their president asking him to resign after Jenni Hermoso kiss

• The Spanish FA has asked Luis Rubiales to resign with immediate effect
• It comes after he kissed Jenni Hermoso following Spain’s World Cup final win 
• FIFA had threaten to ban Spanish teams from international competition 

FIFA will push for Luis Rubiales to be banned from all football for 15 years after the disgraced Spanish FA president’s own federation dramatically withdrew their support for him.

Spanish FA chiefs asked Rubiales, 46, to resign with immediate effect, saying his ‘unacceptable’ behaviour had caused ‘grave harm to the image of Spanish football’.

The U-turn followed a threat from FIFA to ban Spain’s national teams and elite clubs from international competition if the Spanish FA refused to accept their punishment of Rubiales.

Sources involved in the disciplinary process have told Mail Sport that FIFA are pushing for a ban for Rubiales of up to 15 years — the maximum permitted by their statutes. That would have allowed them to take action against Spanish national sides and clubs if the judgment had been contested.

Rubiales was last week given a 90-day interim suspension by FIFA, but retained the backing of the Spanish FA, pending the outcome of an internal investigation into his extraordinary behaviour in kissing Jenni Hermoso following Spain’s World Cup final victory over England.

FIFA will push for Luis Rubiales (right) to be banned from football for 15 years after he kissed Spain star Jenni Hermoso following the country’s World Cup final victory over England

The Spanish FA have performed a U-turn asking the president to resign with immediate effect 

It follows a threat to ban Spain’s national teams and club sides – such as Barcelona or Real Madrid – from international competition if Spanish FA refused to accept Rubiales punishment

Following a five-hour meeting on Monday, the Spanish FA confirmed they had now asked Rubiales to step down.

In another remarkable development on Monday, it emerged that one of Rubiales’ final acts before his suspension last Friday was instructing the Spanish FA to write to UEFA complaining of government interference and asking for the federation to be suspended, which would mean their national teams and clubs would be automatically barred from European competitions.

UEFA rejected the request, however, as the disciplinary process is being handled by FIFA, and now consider the letter to be invalid as Rubiales has since been replaced by an interim president, Pedro Rocha.

FIFA are likely to impose a lengthy ban on Rubiales after being embarrassed by his behaviour following the World Cup final in Sydney, where he also grabbed his crotch despite being just metres away from Spain’s Queen Letizia and her teenage daughter.

The world governing body’s disciplinary committee gathered statements from eyewitnesses before announcing Rubiales’ suspension ‘from all football-related activities at national and international level’ last week, and have the power to ban him from any involvement in the sport for 15 years.

Rubiales instructed the Spanish FA to ask UEFA for the federation to be suspended – something which was rejected due to the disciplinary process being handled by FIFA 

Under FIFA statutes, any ban would have been extended to all Spanish national teams and clubs in FIFA-affiliated competitions if it was not accepted by the Spanish FA. 

Such a ban would have been a huge blow to UEFA, as Spain have five clubs in this year’s men’s Champions League, two in the Europa League and one in the Europa Conference League, while Barcelona are Champions League holders in the women’s game.

On another remarkable day in the saga, it emerged that Rubiales’ mother, Angeles Bejar, was on hunger strike in a church near Malaga protesting the accusations against her son.

In their incendiary statement released over the weekend, the Spanish FA had also accused Hermoso of telling lies.

‘The RFEF (Spanish FA) and the president will show each of the lies that are spread either by someone on behalf of the player or, if applicable, by the player herself,’ it read.

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