Former Spanish football federation president Luis Rubiales had eggs thrown at him during an event to promote his new book on Thursday.
Rubiales resigned as RFEF president in September 2023 after outrage at his behaviour following Spain’s Women’s World Cup win, including an unsolicited kiss on the player Jenni Hermoso, for which he was found guilty of sexual assault earlier this year.
He has now written a book, “Kill Rubiales,” which he said on Thursday is “for those who want to know the reality.”
The book launch, on Madrid’s Maria de Molina Street, was interrupted on Thursday evening when an individual threw three eggs at Rubiales as the former executive was being interviewed in front of an audience.
Rubiales later said the man was his uncle.
“He’s my uncle, his name is Luis Rubén,” he said. “He’s a troublemaker and he’s unwell. I think he’s been arrested. We’ll see what we can do to prevent these things from happening again. It’s a shame”
Video footage showed Rubiales attempting to confront the individual, who was removed from the premises by security staff.
“I didn’t know what he had in his hands,” Rubiales told Radio Marca afterwards. “I thought he might have a gun … I wasn’t thinking about myself.”
Another video clip showed a man being detained by police outside the venue.
Rubiales’ appeal against his conviction — which saw him fined over €10,000, but acquitted of coercion charges — was dismissed by Spain’s High Court in June, although his lawyer subsequently said he would be appealing to the Supreme Court.
