Angry reaction after Spanish football leader kissed a Women’s World Cup star on the mouth

The Spanish government and the world players’ union condemned the behaviour of Luis Rubiales on Monday, a day after Spain’s 1-0 win over England. The soccer federation led by Rubiales sought to downplay the incident through a statement it attributed to the player he kissed, then later released a video in which Rubiales apologized.

Immediately after Spain's victory, Rubiales grabbed his crotch in a victory gesture - seemingly oblivious to 16-year-old Princess Infanta Sofía standing nearby. He later kissed player Jenni Hermoso on the lips during the medal and trophy ceremony on the field, drawing unwanted attention away from the celebration and souring the country's biggest day for women’s football.

The kiss was shocking given the sport’s long-standing allegations of sexual misconduct by male football presidents and coaches against female players on national teams. Two of the 32 World Cup teams, Haiti and Zambia, had to deal with the issue while qualifying for the tournament co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand.

Spain’s acting minister for sports and culture Miquel Iceta told public broadcaster RNE “it is unacceptable to kiss a player on the lips to congratulate her.” The world players' union called the kiss “deeply lamentable.”

On Sunday, Spain's government equality minister had an even stronger reaction.

“It is a form of sexual violence that women suffer on a daily basis, and which has been invisible so far, and which we should not normalize,” Irene Montero said wrote Sunday on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.

The Spanish soccer federation released a statement late Sunday, attributed to Hermoso, to try to settle the controversy.

“It was a totally spontaneous mutual gesture due to the immense joy of