Spain is still missing its first female team squad, despite the resignation of ex-Spanish football federation president Luis Rubiales.
Days after World Cup-winning coach Jorge Vilda was sacked and replaced by Montse Tome, the team’s first female manager, the team has refused to show up.
The 23 players who triumphed in Australia and New Zealand will refuse to join Tome’s first squad for the upcoming UEFA Nations League fixtures against Sweden on September 22 and Switzerland on September 26.
This new development could be a huge problem for the new coach, as she would be without her first team for those fixtures.
Alexia Putellas posted a joint statement on behalf of the team on social media on Tuesday. “To date, as we have conveyed to the RFEF, the changes that have taken place are not enough for the players to feel that they are in a safe place, where women are respected, where there is support for women’s football, and where we can give our maximum performance,” it read.
“We would like to end this statement by saying that the players of the Spanish national team are professional players, and what fills us most with pride is to wear the shirt of our national team and always take our country to the highest positions.
“Therefore, we believe that it is time to fight to show that these situations and practices have no place in our football or our society, that the current structure needs to change and we do it so that the next generations can have a much more egalitarian football and at the height of what we all deserve.”
