Former president of the Spanish Football Federation Luis Rubiales has been banned for three years. AFP
Former president of the Spanish Football Federation Luis Rubiales has been banned for three years. AFP
Former president of the Spanish Football Federation Luis Rubiales has been banned for three years. AFP
Former president of the Spanish Football Federation Luis Rubiales has been banned for three years. AFP

Luis Rubiales: Former Spanish FA president given three-year ban for Jenni Hermoso kiss


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Former Spanish FA president Luis Rubiales has been banned from all football-related activities for three years by world governing body Fifa.

Rubiales had been suspended after he kissed Spanish player Jenni Hermoso on the lips following their win in the Women's World Cup final over England in Australia. Hermoso insisted the kiss was not consensual.

Rubiales subsequently refused to resign, leading to many Spanish players including Hermoso threatening to boycott the team.

“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, having found that he acted in breach of article 13 of the Fifa Disciplinary Code,” the governing body said in a statement on Monday.

“This case relates to the events that occurred during the final of the Women’s World Cup on August 20, for which Rubiales had been provisionally suspended for an initial period of 90 days.

“Rubiales has been notified of the terms of the Fifa Disciplinary Committee’s decision today. The decision remains subject to a possible appeal before the Fifa Appeal Committee.

“Fifa reiterates its absolute commitment to respecting and protecting the integrity of all people and ensuring that the basic rules of decent conduct are upheld.”

Rubiales confirmed in a statement on social media he will appeal against FIFA’s punishment.

He ended a lengthy post by saying: “I will go to the last resort so that justice is done and the truth shines through.”

Hermoso, meanwhile, enjoyed a triumphant return to international football as she scored a late winning goal against Italy on Friday night.

The forward scored in the 89th minute to give the world champions a 1-0 victory after coming on as a second-half substitute in the Uefa Women’s Nations League match in Salerno.

“When Italy sat deep, we needed someone like Jenni to step up with her shooting boots,” Spain’s head coach Montse Tomé said after the game. “That Jenni scored the goal makes us all very happy. We’ve seen her smile and she’s everyone’s smile.”

Luis Rubiales' kiss of Jenni Hermoso became a major scandal in Spain and has led to him receiving a three-year ban. Getty
Luis Rubiales' kiss of Jenni Hermoso became a major scandal in Spain and has led to him receiving a three-year ban. Getty
A timeline of the Historical Dictionary of the Arabic Language
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  • November 2021: First 17 volumes launched 
  • November 2022: Additional 19 volumes released
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Name: Kumulus Water
 
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2007 Osaka

200m Silver

4x100m relay Silver

 

2009 Berlin

100m Gold

200m Gold

4x100m relay Gold

 

2011 Daegu

100m Disqualified in final for false start

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2013 Moscow

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2015 Beijing

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Dubai Rugby Sevens
Winners: Dubai Hurricanes
Runners up: Bahrain

West Asia Premiership
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Runners up: UAE Premiership

UAE Premiership
}Winners: Dubai Exiles
Runners up: Dubai Hurricanes

UAE Division One
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UAE Division Two
Winners: Barrelhouse
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Focus on gratitude: And do so deeply, he says. “Think of one to three things a day that you’re grateful for. It needs to be specific, too, don’t just say ‘air.’ Really think about it. If you’re grateful for, say, what your parents have done for you, that will motivate you to do more for the world.”

Know how to fight: Shetty married his wife, Radhi, three years ago (he met her in a meditation class before he went off and became a monk). He says they’ve had to learn to respect each other’s “fighting styles” – he’s a talk it-out-immediately person, while she needs space to think. “When you’re having an argument, remember, it’s not you against each other. It’s both of you against the problem. When you win, they lose. If you’re on a team you have to win together.” 

'Young girls thinking of big ideas'

Words come easy for aspiring writer Afra Al Muhairb. The business side of books, on the other hand, is entirely foreign to the 16-year-old Emirati. So, she followed her father’s advice and enroled in the Abu Dhabi Education Council’s summer entrepreneurship course at Abu Dhabi University hoping to pick up a few new skills.

“Most of us have this dream of opening a business,” said Afra, referring to her peers are “young girls thinking of big ideas.”

In the three-week class, pupils are challenged to come up with a business and develop an operational and marketing plan to support their idea. But, the learning goes far beyond sales and branding, said teacher Sonia Elhaj.

“It’s not only about starting up a business, it’s all the meta skills that goes with it -- building self confidence, communication,” said Ms Elhaj. “It’s a way to coach them and to harness ideas and to allow them to be creative. They are really hungry to do this and be heard. They are so happy to be actually doing something, to be engaged in creating something new, not only sitting and listening and getting new information and new knowledge. Now they are applying that knowledge.”

Afra’s team decided to focus their business idea on a restaurant modelled after the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Each level would have a different international cuisine and all the meat would be halal. The pupils thought of this after discussing a common problem they face when travelling abroad.

“Sometimes we find the struggle of finding halal food, so we just eat fish and cheese, so it’s hard for us to spend 20 days with fish and cheese,” said Afra. “So we made this tower so every person who comes – from Africa, from America – they will find the right food to eat.”

rpennington@thenational.ae

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Updated: October 31, 2023, 6:00 AM`