The first training session for Spain’s women since winning the World Cup in front of 75,784 spectators last month came on Wednesday evening in the less glamorous surrounds of the Oliva Nova sports centre, near Valencia.
It was their only chance for a proper practice period together before Friday’s Nations League game away to Sweden, and most of the 23 players taking part did not want to be there. Instead, they felt they had been backed into a corner by the Spanish football federation and national government, believing they had to accept promises of future changes to help avoid further embarrassment for the men who still run both the sport and wider society in Spain.
Since their World Cup final triumph on August 20, Spain’s women’s players have been continually thwarted in their bid to finally get the respect and equality they deserve.
That 1-0 defeat of England in the Australian city of Sydney was immediately followed by then Spanish federation president Luis Rubiales’ non-consensual kiss of Spain player Jenni Hermoso and celebratory crotch-grab while alongside female members of Spain’s royal family.
Those actions were not surprising to those who had suffered at the federation during his presidency or closely followed his behavior. But they did draw attention,…
