Luis Rubiales ‘pressured a Spanish FA employee to say Jenni Hermoso consented to their kiss… with the testimony meaning the disgraced former president wasn’t initially removed from his role’

• Luis Rubiales eventually resigned as Spanish FA chief after the kiss-gate scandal
• Spanish reports now claim Rubiales pressured an employee to lie about the kiss
• Listen to the latest episode of Mail Sport’s podcast It’s All Kicking Off! 

Disgraced former Spanish FA president Luis Rubiales reportedly pressured an employee of the country’s football federation (RFEF) to lie about the kiss-gate scandal with Jenni Hermoso.

Ever since they won the World Cup last month, it has been a tumultuous and dramatic period for Spanish football after Rubiales kissed Hermoso on the lips in the aftermath of their final victory over England.

Rubiales – who claimed the kiss was consensual – eventually resigned from his position despite initially refusing to do so, although he is battling charges of sexual assault and coercion.

Meanwhile, controversial former manager Jorge Vilda – who was closely linked to Rubiales and offered a new contract by the 46-year-old shortly before he resigned – was sacked from his role.

And, according to Spanish outlet El Confidencial, Rubiales pressured an employee in the RFEF’s communications department to testify that Hermoso gave her consent to the kiss.

Disgraced former Spanish FA president Luis Rubiales reportedly pressured an employee of the country’s football federation to lie about the kiss-gate scandal with Jenni Hermoso

It has been a tumultuous period for Spanish football after Rubiales kissed Hermoso on the lips in the aftermath of their World Cup final victory over England back in August

This testimony was used in the aftermath of incident and meant Rubiales wasn’t initially removed from his role.

The report goes onto state the RFEF are now investigating these new allegations.  

Rubiales came under intense scrutiny following the incident with Hermoso, with protests against his presidency taking place across Spain and high-profile individuals calling for him to resign.

FIFA handed him an initial 90-day suspension, and pushed to ban him for longer, while the Spanish FA publicly apologised for his behaviour. 

Hermoso lodged a formal complaint earlier this month before returning to Mexico where she plays her club football after claiming the kiss was not consensual and prosecutors announced they had made their formal complaint to a judge at the Audiencia Nacional court in Madrid.

Rubiales has repeatedly insisted the kiss was consensual and described it as a ‘peck’.

The former Spanish FA president eventually resigned in a recent interview with Piers Morgan after weeks of criticism over his conduct.

He admitted in the interview that the kiss was ‘a mistake’ but insisted ‘there was no harm, no sexual content, no aggression.’ 

His resignation was eventually confirmed in a lengthy statement in which Rubiales accepted he ‘could not return’ to his role as president but continued to insist ‘many falsehoods’ had been spread about him.

Rubiales has also been banned from contacting Hermoso or being within 200 metres of her.

Rubiales (left) eventually announced he would leave his post in an exclusive interview with Piers Morgan (right), but continued to claim his innocence and that the kiss was ‘consensual’

Hermoso claimed the kiss wasn’t consensual and lodged a formal complaint earlier this month 

Rubiales’ 72-year-old mum Angeles Bejar went on hunger strike at a church in her son’s hometown of Motril near Granada for two days – which she said she had launched it to get Jenni to ‘tell the truth’ about the kiss – before she was rushed to hospital 48 hours into her protest.

According to a sexual consent law passed last year, Rubiales could face a fine or a prison sentence of one to four years if found guilty of sexual assault. 

Elsewhere, new Spain boss Montse Tome – who took over from Vilda – named her first squad since taking over this week and included 15 of their World Cup winners, but not Hermoso. 

Speaking after her squad was announced, Tome said: ‘We are with Jenni and with all the players. As for Jenni, we felt the best way to protect her in this squad was in this way.’ 

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