Spanish court sentences ex-soccer boss Rubiales to pay fine over kiss without consent

MADRID: Spain's High Court has found former soccer federation boss Luis Rubiales guilty of sexual assault for kissing player Jenni Hermoso without her consent and fined him over 10,000 euros ($10,434), the court said on Thursday.

It acquitted him of charges of coercion.

Prosecutors had sought a prison sentence for Rubiales, 47, in a case that caused heated debate in Spain about sexism in women's football and wider Spanish society.

The court said in a statement it had also acquitted Rubiales' three co-defendants who were accused of attempting to coerce Hermoso into saying the kiss, at the 2023 World Cup awards ceremony in Sydney, was consensual. The ensuing furor overshadowed Spain's victory in the tournament.

Rubiales has maintained through this month's trial that Hermoso had consented to be kissed amid the celebrations.

The ruling also banned Rubiales from going within a 200-meter (yard) radius of Hermoso and from communicating with her for one year. The fine was set at 20 euros a day over an 18-month period.

A lawyer for Hermoso was not immediately available for comment.