Spain’s High Court on Thursday found a former soccer federation boss, Luis Rubiales, guilty of sexual assault for kissing a player, Jenni Hermoso, without her consent and fined him over €10,000 ($10,434).
The court, however, acquitted him of charges of coercion.
Prosecutors had sought a prison sentence for Mr 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 that it had also acquitted Mr Rubiales’ three co-defendants who were accused of attempting to coerce Ms Hermoso into saying the kiss, at the 2023 World Cup awards ceremony in Sydney, was consensual.
The ensuing furore overshadowed Spain’s victory in the tournament.
Mr Rubiales maintained through the trial that Ms Hermoso consented to be kissed amid the celebrations.
The ruling also banned Mr Rubiales from going within a 200-meter (yard) radius of Ms Hermoso and from communicating with her for one year.
The fine was set at €20 a day over an 18-month period.
The lawyer for Ms Hermoso was not immediately available for comment.
(Reuters/NAN)
