The ongoing mess at the Spanish Football Federation shows no signs of clearing up any time soon. There had been hope that Pedro Rocha, who was officially appointed as the successor of Luis Rubiales earlier this year, would be able to restore parity, but if anything, his existence has appeared to do the opposite.
Rocha was appointed as interim president upon Rubiales’ resignation last year, and although he was elected earlier in 2024, he was delayed in being sworn in amid accusations of being involved in the ongoing allegations of corruption levelled at the Federation.
During the time that Rocha was interim president, he was accused of overstepping his bounds as president of the Federation’s Management Committee. The Court of Arbitration for Sport received a complaint from Miguel Galan, president of the National Centre for the Training of Football Coaches, and on Friday, they presented their verdict on the case. As per Diario AS, the instructor appointed by the CAS to study the case has asked for Rocha to be banned from football for six years.
The proposed six-year ban is broken down into three sections: two years would be for allegedly violating article 76 of the Sports Law, a further two are for terminating the contract of external legal advisor Tomas Gonzalez Cueto, and the final two are for appearing before the Federation as a private prosecutor in the Rubiales Case.
The Court must now decide whether to ratify this punishment for Rocha. If they do so, the Spanish Football Federation will need to find a new another president, which would be their third in the last 12 months.
