FIFA has banned former Spain football chief Luis Rubiales for three years from all football-related activities at national and international levels for forcing a kiss on the lips of World Cup winner Jenni Hermoso.
Rubiales was provisionally suspended for 90 days in August after the incident, which took place during the medal ceremony after Spain won the Women’s World Cup in Sydney.
Hermoso said the incident left her feeling “vulnerable and like the victim of an assault”.
Rubiales resigned as head of the Spanish football federation in September, but repeatedly insisted that the kiss was consensual.
FIFA’s disciplinary committee has now imposed a three-year ban on Rubiales, who has 10 days to request a motivated decision.
“The FIFA disciplinary committee has banned Luis Rubiales, the former president of the Spanish Football Association (RFEF), from all football-related activities at national and international levels for three years,” FIFA said in a statement on Monday.
The decision is subject to a possible appeal before the FIFA Appeal Committee.
FIFA said it is committed to respecting and protecting the integrity of all people and ensuring that the basic rules of decent conduct are upheld.
