New soccer boss

After kissing scandal: Spain in trouble again

Pedro Rocha(Bild: AFP/AFP or licensors)

The Spanish soccer association RFEF, which has been rocked by scandals, is facing further turbulence following the appointment of Pedro Rocha as president. Rocha has received the necessary support from members of the relevant committees, the association announced on Friday. The official replaces Luis Rubiales, whose deputy and confidant he was, who resigned last year in the wake of the kissing scandal.

However, it was initially unclear how long Rocha would remain in office. The sports authority CSD, which had announced a monitoring of the association on Thursday, could soon decide on his suspension, wrote the newspaper "El Diario". The background to this are corruption investigations surrounding the RFEF and proceedings against Rocha before the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

The world governing body FIFA and Europe's governing body UEFA had expressed their concerns regarding the monitoring by the sports authority the previous evening. Additional information would be gathered in order to assess the extent to which the appointment of the CSD committee could affect the RFEF's obligation to manage its affairs independently and without undue state interference. The participation of Spanish teams in competitions also depends on this.

Rochas' predecessor, Rubiales, resigned as head of the RFEF in September in the wake of the kissing scandal at the 2023 World Cup in Australia. He was subsequently banned for three years by FIFA, among others. The then official had kissed player Jennifer Hermoso on the mouth during the award ceremony after winning the World Cup title. The striker contradicted Rubiales' statement that the kiss was consensual and filed a complaint.