Barcelona and Real Madrid could risk Champions League football next season amid the brewing crisis that is engulfing the Spanish FA, MySportDab reports.
Spanish Football President, Luis Rubiales, stoked reactions after a footage of him kissing Spanish women’s footballer, Jenni Hermoso, went viral.
As the Spanish officials were celebrating the players who did the country proud by defeating England to win the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup trophy, Rubiales could be seen grabbing Hermoso on the head and planting a kiss on her lips.
The footage has sparked a heavy backlash from football fans across the globe, including Spanish football fans, and professional players.
After the kiss scandal, the Spanish Football Federation convened an emergency meeting in which Luis Rubiales was expected to resign.
However, in a shock move that deepened the crisis, Rubiales refused to resign blaming ‘false feminism’ for attempting a ‘social murder’ on his reputation.
His decision not to resign sparked a further backlash with FIFA wading into the crisis and temporarily suspending him for three months pending the outcome of Investigations.
Now, according to reports from Spanish outlets, the Spanish FA have kicked against FIFA’s decision to suspend Rubiales and have threatened to withdraw their membership with FIFA.
Also, they have kicked against the attempt by Spanish government to wade into the crisis, trying to investigate Luis Rubiales.
They have written UEFA to consider suspending them from the association due to the interference of the Spanish government on the brewing saga.
The move by the Spanish FA has been considered as a self-sabotage which could see Spanish clubs missed out of all European competitions.
Barcelona, Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, and Real Sociedad will also miss Champions League football this season if the Spanish FA is suspended from UEFA.
Also, Villarreal and Real Betis could also lost their Europa League slots while Osasuna will be bundled out of Conference League.
Meanwhile, UEFA has been blasted by some pundits for failing to make a comment on the brewing saga.
Luis Rubiales doubles as Vice President of UEFA and could face a jail term or ban after investigations on the kiss scandal.
Luis Rubiales and Spanish FA have maintained Hermoso lied about the incident while Hermoso has debunked Luis Rubiales’ report that she agreed to the kiss.