On August 20, 2023, the Spanish national football team won the FIFA Women’s World Cup for the first time in history. As star forward Jenni Hermoso received her medal in front of thousands of fans, Luis Rubiales, then president of the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF), kissed her on the lips without her consent. In the days and months that followed, RFEF faced significant political, regulatory, and legal scrutiny from the Spanish government, national and global football governing bodies (including FIFA), and players’ unions. In 2024, after an investigation, Spanish officials charged Rubiales with sexual assault and coercion. Following a two-week trial in which both Hermoso and Rubiales testified, Spain’s High Court found Rubiales guilty of sexual assault on February 20, 2025.
The incident and its aftermath made headlines worldwide and sparked a renewed and widespread discussion on ways to effectively protect players from misconduct and abuse. RFEF’s response to the incident, as well as other safeguarding failures, raise important takeaways for clubs, teams, leagues, and other sports organizations seeking to proactively implement policies that address athlete safety and well-being.
Where Did RFEF Go Wrong?
The Hermoso case brought several underlying issues related to player safety, protection, and labor relations to the forefront. For example, in the years leading up to the incident, players directed several complaints to RFEF over a lack of “professionalism” in the women’s organization. In 2022, with the support of players’ union FUTPRO, 15 players formally requested not to be called up to the national team for then-upcoming international competition as a result of issues with team management and coaching staff. Issues included not having enough time to prepare for matches due to poor travel planning and being subject to forced searches of their bags by coaches. Outlets reported that RFEF offered its support to then coach Jorge Vilda rather than the players, and that the players were made to apologize before getting another call-up. FUTPRO has also noted that RFEF officials have a history of placing “friends or contacts” in open roles, rather than going through a more traditional recruitment process.
In the aftermath of the incident, RFEF again appeared to prioritize its leadership and coaches over its players. For example, RFEF leadership did not initially call for Rubiales to resign after the kissing incident. When he gave a speech refusing to resign, RFEF officials, including men’s coach Luis de la Fuente, applauded the decision. After a new coach took over the national team, she made the decision to not include Hermoso on her first roster, stating that she wanted to “protect” Hermoso for “sporting reasons.” This led to speculation that Hermoso was inappropriately excluded for reasons other than her athletic performance.
Rubiales’ trial also called into question whether RFEF maintains any working player safeguarding policies or labor relations. During witness testimony, it was revealed that RFEF ratified a “protocol of action against sexual violence” under Rubiales’ tenure as president. However, Rubiales testified that he wasn’t aware of its contents, and Hermoso testified that she didn’t know the policy existed. FUTPRO ultimately filed a complaint with a Spanish governing body, requesting that the body require RFEF to update the policy and disseminate it to players. FUTPRO president Amanda Gutierrez also expressed concerns that RFEF failed to engage the union on any of these issues.
Takeaways for Sports Clubs
A culture of education, leadership, detection, and enforcement around athlete safeguards will go a long way in preventing misconduct targeted at players. At minimum, all clubs at the youth through professional levels should maintain a clear zero-tolerance policy on reported misconduct, a strong mandated reporter network, and a robust safeguarding policy to protect the mental and physical well-being of their players. Moreover, clubs should prioritize sound hiring practices and strong labor relations to ensure a healthy culture. Specifically, clubs can take the following actions:
- Establish a Code of Conduct – To help prevent misconduct before it occurs, clubs should implement behavioral guidelines for players, coaches, and staff to make clear what constitutes misconduct. All players, coaches, and staff should acknowledge receipt of such a code at the beginning of their relationship with the club.
- Establish a Zero-Tolerance Policy for Misconduct – Clubs should ensure that players, coaches, and staff are aware that detecting, preventing, deterring, and eliminating misconduct is a key organizational priority. A zero-tolerance policy, including building a mandated reporter network and culture, and the consistent enforcement of that policy will help instill athlete confidence.
- Establish a Thorough Safeguarding Policy – Broadly speaking, an effective safeguarding policy includes protocols on abuse and misconduct prevention, response, and investigation. Depending on the club, specific safeguarding focus areas might include (but are not limited to): clear articulations of prohibited misconduct; emphasis on holistic player health and well-being; safe recruitment of coaches and other personnel; limits and clear parameters for coach/athlete interactions (as well as, where applicable, adult and minor interactions); safe photography and videography policies; safe use of the Internet and social media; travel and transportation policies; and facilities and security safety.
- Appoint Safeguarding Representatives – Clubs can consider appointing safeguarding representatives—who can serve as a resource to players and ensure that the safeguarding policy is implemented properly—to be present at all club events. Several international sports governing bodies, including the Asian Football Confederation, require safeguarding representatives.
- Establish Transparent Reporting Procedures – As part of a safeguarding policy, clubs should outline a process through which athletes can report instances of misconduct (both internally in the organization, and with law enforcement, the U.S. Center for SafeSport, and other regulatory bodies as appropriate) without fear of retaliation. To the extent possible where investigations are managed internally (as permitted by the Center), clubs should keep victims informed about any investigations into misconduct.
- Prioritize Safeguarding Education – Clubs should mandate training for players, coaches, and staff on the importance of safeguards and on methods for avoiding misconduct.
- Prioritize Player Involvement – Clubs should ensure that players not only know about safeguarding policies, but feel that they have a role in adjusting them so that their specific needs are met.
- Conduct Reviews of Standing Policies – Clubs should periodically review their safeguarding policies to ensure they meet the needs of players, coaches, and staff.
- Evaluate Hiring Practices – Clubs should audit their hiring practices to weed out nepotism and ensure that key roles are filled with the highest-quality candidates who are unafraid to implement a safe and professional culture.
- Establish Strong Labor Relations – Clubs should foster good labor relations with players’ unions so that player concerns are elevated to club leaders and do not snowball into larger problems through inaction by club leadership.
Clubs with questions related to safeguarding or labor relations are encouraged to contact the authors of this article or any other attorney in Venable’s Sports Law Group.