Spanish Football Federation president Luis Rubiales reportedly sent FIFA a video showing Jenni Hermoso joking about their kiss.
Rubiales has been at the heart of controversy in Spain since the Women’s World Cup final, won by her country (1-0).
After the win over England, Rubiales grabbed and kissed Hermoso without his consent.
She said afterwards that she did not appreciate the kiss, while 81 Players have since claimed they will not play for Spain until Rubiales is removed from the role. The player’s mother went on a hunger strike to demand that Hermoso ‘tell the truth’ about what happened.
Rubiales has always claimed the kiss was “consensual.” An investigation into his behavior is ongoing.
Today, new footage from the Spanish team bus appears to show Hermoso laughing at the memes generated by the kiss on social media. It appears to show a screenshot of the famous incident, as well as a photo of Iker Casillas kissing journalist Sara Carbonero after La Roja’s men’s team won the 2010 World Cup.
Rubiales is then filmed getting on the bus, and the crew appears to be chanting the word “beso”, which means “kiss”.
He was suspended by FIFA, but the president of the Spanish federation sent the video to the organization to defend himself, according to El Espanol.
The story has dominated the news in Spain and it remains to be seen how FIFA will react to Rubiales sending the video.