Spain women's World Cup players demand more heads roll as Rubiales in court
World Cup winners demanded more heads roll at its scandal-hit RFEF federation whose disgraced ex-boss appeared in court on sexual assault charges.
Just hours after Luis Rubiales was quizzed by a judge for kissing midfielder Jenni Hermoso, all but two of Spain's 23 World Cup players said they would not don the national shirt without deeper changes within the RFEF, demanding its current interim head also resign.
The statement came as the squad's new coach Montse Tome was to announce the lineup for two upcoming UEFA Women's Nations League matches against Sweden and Switzerland, which was promptly postponed, federation sources said.
«The changes put in place are not enough,» said a statement signed by 39 players, among them 21 of the 23 World Cup winners.
Demanding «fundamental changes to the RFEF's leadership», they called for the «resignation of the RFEF president» Pedro Rocha, who took over as interim leader when FIFA suspended Rubiales on August 26.
Despite a string of recent changes, the federation remains in the hands of officials appointed by Rubiales, with the players insisting on structural changes «within the office of the president and the secretary general».
The bombshell came after days of optimism within the RFEF that the players would come round after it sacked controversial coach Jorge Vilda, appointed Tome in his stead and pledged further changes, not to mention Rubiales' long-awaited resignation on Sunday.
On August 25, 81 Spain players, including the 23 world champions, had started a mass strike saying they would not play for the national team without significant changes at the head of the federation.
Brought to court by a kiss
Earlier on Friday, Rubiales appeared in court where he was quizzed by Judge
