Former Spanish football chief Luis Rubiales has told a court that he was “absolutely sure” player Jenni Hermoso consented to him kissing her.
Rubiales is on trial in Madrid accused of sexual assault for kissing Hermoso on the lips after Spain won the Women’s World Cup in Sydney in August 2023.
Giving evidence today, he told the court that he asked Ms Hermoso if he could kiss her before it happened.
“When Jenny came up to me, she kind of made a face. We’ve known each other for a long time. Obviously, the kiss was because we became champions.
“She’d missed a penalty and with all the tension during the game, I said, ‘forget about the penalty – we’re champions and this is down to you. Without you, we wouldn’t have done it’.
“And she hugged me very, very hard just below my armpits and lifted me off the ground.
“When I kind of hit the ground again, I said, ‘can you can I give you a kiss?’ and she said, ‘okay’,” he claimed.
Trump issues Gaza ceasefire ultimatum to Hamas as he warns ‘all hell is going to break out’ if hostages not returned
Trump says Palestinians couldn’t return to Gaza under his redevelopment plan
Mayor says death of British couple in French village may be linked to ‘problem from past’
He also said that the “law of physics” meant that he could not be “on top of her” during the kiss, as the prosecution framed the incident.
“My feet come off the ground, you’ll see that. I do what I can to not fall over and lose my balance. Anybody, who knows anything about the law of physics knows that, you have to bend your knees in order to take off the ground,” he said.
The 47-year-old is also accused of attempting to coerce Ms Hermoso – with the help of three other former soccer federation officials – into publicly saying the kiss was consensual.
He denies the charges.
The ensuing scandal after the kiss eclipsed Spain’s first women’s World Cup victory and proved a tipping point for efforts by Spain’s female players to expose sexism and achieve parity with male counterparts.
Be the first to get Breaking News
Install the Sky News app for free
Follow our channel and never miss an update
This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly.
Please refresh the page for the fullest version.
You can receive breaking news alerts on a smartphone or tablet via the Sky News app. You can also follow us on WhatsApp and subscribe to our YouTube channel to keep up with the latest news.
Listen to Sky News Daily on your podcast app 
