Hours after Luis Rubiales, the president of Spain’s soccer federation, refused to resign Friday over the unsolicited kiss he gave team member Jenni Hermoso during Spain’s World Cup victory ceremony Sunday, all 23 members of the title-winning squad signed a letter calling for “strong responses from public authorities” and vowing not to play for La Roja as long as Rubiales remains in charge.
The letter, released by the Spanish soccer players union amid outrage over Rubiales’s remarks during an emergency meeting called by the Real Federación Española de Fútbol earlier Friday, was co-signed by 58 other players.