'Why would he sue me?!' - Luis Rubiales' egg-throwing uncle reveals breadsticks plan as he attacked his disgraced nephew and ex-Spanish FA chief

Rubiales' book launch for Matar a Rubiales (Killing Rubiales) descended into chaos when he was pelted with eggs by his own uncle, named as Luis Ruben Rubiales. The former RFEF president, who is attempting to relaunch his public image, confirmed the identity of the egg-thrower after the incident occurred in front of cameras. The launch follows his sexual assault conviction for the now infamous non-consensual kiss of Jenni Hermoso during the 2023 Women’s World Cup medal ceremony. While acquitted of a separate coercion charge, the conviction solidified his public and professional downfall. The book has been marketed as an effort to present his "unfiltered truth" to the public, as Rubiales continues to claim he has been wronged by the media, institutions and politicians. Instead, the event inadvertently highlighted the deep fractures in his personal world, extending even to his own family. 

Speaking after the incident, Rubiales said: "Now I've found out that it's my blood uncle, his name is Luis Ruben. An uncle who is my age. He threw eggs at me because he's a deranged person, and I can't find a justification for why. We will have to take action against him because I thought he was armed. I went after him because I thought something was going to happen to a family. The lucky thing is that they stopped me. I don't know if he had a weapon or anything. I saw a pregnant woman with two small children. I thought about the children. If I had grabbed him, we would be in a different situation now."

Reporters spoke to Rubiales' uncle on the steps of the Plaza de Castilla courthouse in Madrid, where he told Telecinco: "I'm very well, it's as if I've just returned from a 15-day vacation in Beinidorm and I have that energy. I have positive energy." When asked if he believed he would be pursued for compensation by Rubiales, he said: "Why would he sue me?" And another reporter who spoke to him confirmed the attacker had other foods to throw, saying: "He also planned to throw a bag of breadsticks at him during the event."

Looking for smarter football bets? Get expert previews, data-driven predictions & winning insights with GOAL Tips on Telegram. Join our growing community now!

What continues to anger many is Rubiales’ refusal to apologise directly to Hermoso. He recently said: "I'm not apologising to Jenni Hermoso because I asked her and she said: 'Okay'. Jenni and I know that what the ruling says isn’t true. It was a kiss of emotion, with no sexual connotation whatsoever. Jenni was a good friend, she missed a penalty... she helped us a lot in rebuilding the team. Jenni was my friend. I spoke to her on the plane. I told her that we should both come forward and say what we've said. She refused. It was said that there was pressure, and we requested the video to show that there was no such pressure, but the judge did not deem it appropriate to show the video."

Rubiales has repeatedly framed the situation surrounding the kiss as an over-reaction borne from political and social agendas. "It was a mistake, I wasn’t right. From there to everything that’s been blown out of proportion, distorted, taken to the extreme... with certain interests. It’s more than I deserved," he said. "I stand by it. I apologise, I apologise again. As president, I should have been more composed, more professional. I saw an immediate move by the far left in this country, with an immediate change of script. [Spain prime minister] Pedro Sanchez needed the support of the separatists to be sworn in (as prime minister), and he had to grant them amnesty. It suited him well to talk about something else. It was a smokescreen. Media outlets that receive significant funding from the league attacked me. I saw that the far left, with their hypocrisy of blowing a minor issue out of proportion... they were clearly after me."