The Guardia Civil said former Spanish Football Federation president Luis Rubiales was arrested upon his return to Spain as part of the investigation into the holding of the Spanish Super Cup in Saudi Arabia.
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The Guardia Civil said Rubiales was questioned by police at Madrid airport after being stopped as he exited the plane bringing him home from the Dominican Republic.
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Rubiales resigned from his post as Football Association president in September after causing an international scandal by kissing player Jenni Hermoso without her consent during the Women's World Cup final. The former sports manager, who has denied committing any wrongdoing, is facing trial for alleged sexual assault against the athlete.
Rubiales was in the Dominican Republic two weeks ago when police raided his property in Granada and the offices of the Spanish Football Federation in Madrid as part of the corruption and money laundering investigation that includes the Super Cup.
Seven people were arrested by police and Rubiales was identified as one of five people under investigation. The former sports manager has shortened his stay abroad by three days. He initially told the court that he would return on Saturday 6 April.
The former president of the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) is interrogated in police custody by officers of the Central Operational Unit of the Civil Guard, who can detain him for a maximum of 72 hours, as indicated by law enforcement sources cited by EFE .
The arrest of Luis Rubiales would not have taken place by order of the investigating judge of the Majadahonda Court, who coordinates the investigation into the alleged corruption in contracts closed by the RFEF in the last 5 years, and who will summon the suspect for questioning in the next few days .
Uco agents had searched Luis Rubales' house in Cordoba (Andalusia) last week, seizing a large amount of documentation and on Monday they also searched his residence in the Dominican Republic, where they seized his mobile phones and a tablet .
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«I am here to say that it is false that he took bribes on apartments here in Santo Domingo. It is false that I did real estate speculation in Cape Verde. It is false that he has land for construction in Saudi Arabia. The money in my accounts is the result of my work.” This is what Rubiales said in an exclusive interview with Spanish TV La Sexta in Santo Domingo, which will be broadcast this evening at 10.30pm.
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During his tenure as president of the Spanish Football Federation, Rubiales overhauled the format of the Spanish Super Cup in 2020, creating a four-team mini-tournament and moving the competition to Saudi Arabia as part of a deal reportedly worth 40 million euros per tournament for the federation.
Prosecutors opened an investigation into that deal in 2022 following leaked audio between Rubiales and then-Barcelona player Gerard Piqué involving million-dollar commissions. Pique's Kosmos sports entertainment company was involved in the deal with the federation and Saudi Arabia.
A company official told The Associated Press that no Kosmos employees were arrested or placed under investigation and no company property was searched.
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