३० ऑगस्ट, २०२३

Somehow the women's victory emanated from the men's balls.

I'm reading the stunning first 3 paragraphs of "The Kissing Scandal After Spain’s Women’s World Cup Win/The support for a player who endured an unwanted kiss during the trophy presentation shows how attitudes toward women’s soccer are changing, but not fast enough" (The New Yorker).

Great writing from Louisa Thomas:
Before Luis Rubiales, the president of Spain’s soccer federation, grabbed the head of one of the stars of the Women’s World Cup, Jenni Hermoso, and kissed her lips during the trophy presentation; before he lifted another player, Athenea del Castillo, over his shoulder and paraded her, rear up, around the pitch; before he promised the players a trip to Ibiza and joked about marrying Hermoso; before he declared that he had done nothing offensive and, in fact, was the real victim; before the Spanish federation reportedly threatened to sue Hermoso for denying that the kiss was consensual—before all that, he stood in the stands at Stadium Australia, in Sydney, and pumped his crotch. 
The gesture, he later admitted, was rather embarrassing: after all, the Queen of Spain was standing a few feet away, along with her sixteen-year-old daughter. But he could explain! “In a moment of euphoria, I grabbed that part of my body,” Rubiales said, at an extraordinary general-assembly meeting of the rfef, Spain’s federation. Rubiales looked at Jorge Vilda, the team’s coach, and addressed him directly. “We’ve been through a lot, Jorge, a lot, this past year.” They had been vilified. They had “suffered a lot.” As the final whistle sounded, Rubiales continued, Vilda had turned to the federation president up in the stands to “dedicate” the win to Rubiales. “I replied that, no, no, it was ‘You, you, you.’ And at that moment, I made you this sign, ‘Ole, your balls.’ ” For the lewd gesture, he apologized not to the players but to the “royal household.” 
And there it was, straight from the man’s own mouth, the truth behind all of it—behind the unwanted kiss, behind the antics, behind the months of conflict with national-team players, unresolved even as the country hoisted the World Cup trophy. The truth, too, behind the years of neglect, disregard, and disrespect for the women’s game. The women’s win belonged to him and Vilda, Rubiales said. It belonged to their balls.

६८ टिप्पण्या:

Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves म्हणाले...

this is why sports are boring.
the fan obsession. ugh

Esteban म्हणाले...

A real charmer, he is. What a scumbag.

Mark म्हणाले...

15 Spanish players refused to play on the team because of his reputation, so he goes ahead and acts like this assuming he will never be called out on it.

Almost as cringey as the bra thread and all the old perverts who cannot stop themselves from staring.

The Crack Emcee म्हणाले...

"The women’s win belonged to him and Vilda, Rubiales said. It belonged to their balls."

I stopped watching soccer after I was living in France, by watching everybody getting excited over nothing, repeatedly. This is a perfect problem for them to solve for the same reason. I don't know why anybody plays soccer. I don't know why anybody watches it. Women do whatever they want and try to make whatever men do criminal. I wouldn't participate if it bothered me that much.

Like I do with soccer,...

Leland म्हणाले...

The whole competition seems nothing but scandal off the pitch.

hawkeyedjb म्हणाले...

This would be interesting if it were about something interesting. But it's about women's soccer.

The Crack Emcee म्हणाले...

By the way, standing up for right is a great way to ruin your life and career.

The kids should let that sink in a little,...

Spiros Pappas म्हणाले...

Greece abolished its monarchy in the early 1970s by referendum. I don't think any king or queen can survive a vote anywhere in the world. Why keep these people on? They're gross.

Jake म्हणाले...

Disagree.

mikee म्हणाले...

If the public displays were the worst of his misbehavior, the women should still be apalled and make him stop that. If he was molesting them in private during training, they should stick his twig&berries on a spike in a trophy case.

rhhardin म्हणाले...

I gather something's wrong but am unable to tell what it is.

farmgirl म्हणाले...

I have no idea whatall went down… It’s off limits for me.
There’s this, though:

https://en.as.com/videos/video-jenni-hermoso-in-ibiza-with-teammates-v/?outputType=amp

Why party w/a dick?
Always more to the story…

The Crack Emcee म्हणाले...

I thought Bill Burr resolved this when he said "It's not my job to give a fuck about women soccer!"

Gahrie म्हणाले...

If women's soccer wasn't financially supported by men's soccer, it wouldn't exist.

Wilbur म्हणाले...

Seems to be an inordinate amount of at best, knuckleheads, at worst, sickos in sports administration everywhere and thus it has ever been.

Talk about clueless, jeez.

RideSpaceMountain म्हणाले...

"pumped his crotch"

Unless he was doing it like this, he was doing it wrong.

Sebastian म्हणाले...

"Rubiales looked at Jorge Vilda, the team’s coach, and addressed him directly. “We’ve been through a lot, Jorge, a lot, this past year.” They had been vilified. They had “suffered a lot.”"

The "great writing" doesn't explain what happened. The guys had shown "balls" over the prior year.

His gestures were ridiculous, all the more for inviting the obvious metoo-ish attack.

Kate म्हणाले...

I gotta say ... "Ole, your balls" is a great phrase. Someone talented could subvert it into a woman's Chad-meme.

Old and slow म्हणाले...

Perhaps they should only be coached by women. The victory celebration would be more restrained because there probably wouldn’t be one.

Iman म्हणाले...

Ow! My ballz!

Spiros म्हणाले...

Someone should have lip-read the video of this thing already. What the hell is going on? I think he's probably just another run of the mill pig but I wouldn't rule out that these two were secretly dating.

re Pete म्हणाले...

"Yes, ’n’ how many times must the cannonballs fly"

Cappy म्हणाले...

Thank you, Ann.

NorthOfTheOneOhOne म्हणाले...

Well, it can be truthfully said that if not for some man's balls those women wouldn't be here to be victorious.

The Crack Emcee म्हणाले...

Mark said...

"Almost as cringey as the bra thread and all the old perverts who cannot stop themselves from staring."

Studies show that women stare at each other's breasts as much as any man, so there's a lot of "perverts" to go around.

Darkisland म्हणाले...

Why does a women's soccer team need a male coach?

Are women just not good enough to coach soccer at a high level?

Seems like if they are going to have women's teams, the whole team, including coaches, managers trainers etc should be female.

Cheaper, too. They could save 44% on salaries. (Just kidding about the salaries)

John Henry

rehajm म्हणाले...

Thank you Crack- you are right, it is not my responsibility to pay attention to this…

Darkisland म्हणाले...

When women's team coaches go to soccer ceremonies do they have to sit at the kid's table?

If they are not good enough to coach real, men's, soccer, why should they get to sit with the big boys who are?

Are there any women coaching men's teams at this level?

John Henry

The Crack Emcee म्हणाले...

rhhardin said...

"I gather something's wrong but am unable to tell what it is."

Men have dicks. We grab them, talk about them, and give them credit for great deeds.

To women, this is a crime, unless they have a need for them.

planetgeo म्हणाले...

It's Spain. A culture that historically admires aggressive men who fight bulls and kiss women. They finally win the top prize of the favorite sport of Lesbians. In a moment of wild celebration, an unauthorized kiss happens. A lesson learned. The Lesbians let it be known that from now on, better (and safer) for Spanish men to kiss bulls and fight women.

Ann Althouse म्हणाले...

"Unless he was doing it like this, he was doing it wrong."

Thanks. Perfect. Great kid.

Ann Althouse म्हणाले...

"I gotta say ... "Ole, your balls" is a great phrase."

I know. It was new to me. It's quite hilarious, seen from the outside.

Reading about the phrase at a word forum that pre-dates this incident, somebody says: "These days someone might say "You've got some balls!", "That took some balls!" "You've got balls!" Although this referred originally to a man's testicles, these days "to have balls" is increasingly used by and about women. Note that context and tone of voice is important. You need to get it right or you could sound sarcastic or critical."

https://forum.wordreference.com/threads/¡olé-tus-huevos.2677512/

The Crack Emcee म्हणाले...

"Somehow the women's victory emanated from the men's balls."

Bill Burr again: "We gave you a fucking league!"

We = Men (with our balls - how "ballsy" was that?)

The Crack Emcee म्हणाले...

Ann Althouse said...

"Thanks. Perfect. Great kid."

As soon as that kid opened his mouth, I thought he was horrifying.

The Crack Emcee म्हणाले...

Ann Althouse said...
"Thanks. Perfect. Great kid."

Look at it again: that kid is the stuff of nightmares.

Darkisland म्हणाले...

I'm with Crack on this one.

John Henry

Darkisland म्हणाले...

Blogger The Crack Emcee said...

Men have dicks. We grab them, talk about them, and give them credit for great deeds.

Unlike women. Who never talk about their vagina's.

See that best selling home appliance repair guide "The Vagina Monologues" for example.

Or the women dressed as 7' tall vaginas who show up at Republican conventions and elsewhere.

Yeah, I know, vulvas. But the inner vaginal canal is usually prominent so I'm going with vagina.

John Henry

n.n म्हणाले...

It sounds like a sexist metaphor for sex, elevating the male to a matador taming a braless cow. Ole!

AZ Bob म्हणाले...

There's always some guy who gets away with being too handsy with the women and it doesn't seem to hold him back professionally. I've seen lots of touching, hugging and hair sniffing, and that's just from our President.

n.n म्हणाले...

See Dick smother Mulva.

wild chicken म्हणाले...

I knew an old guy from DC who learned Spanish and worked in Buenos Aires ca 1925. He said a typical greeting among men was "Good morning, how are your balls today?"

Kirk Parker म्हणाले...

Crack, John Henry:

What, you're not enthralled by "in football action today, we had another thrilling 0-0 tie between..."?

J Scott म्हणाले...

"Leland said...
The whole competition seems nothing but scandal off the pitch."

All the newz around the Women's World Cup is just negative and makes you want to tune it all out. Instead of Spain getting to celebrate the win we have this execrable storyline. Not to mention the storylines about the US Team and it's coach and players.

n.n म्हणाले...

Mommy, where do women ("posterity") come from?

Ask your father.

Daddy...

Emanations from balls. Ole!

n.n म्हणाले...

To be fair, take a knee, VP. I wonder if "willy" would have been equally inclusive of the transgender spectrum. I wonder how many women would be willing to compete on equal terms for social progress.

Joe Smith म्हणाले...

He was acting like a man.

Was he a bit crude? Yes. But he was caught up in the moment. He neglected to think back upon the DEI training that he never took.

This country (USA) has become so pussified over the last few decades and this is proof.

Man acts like a man and we get the vapors.

Lem Vibe Bandit म्हणाले...

I thought “men’s balls” meant that the women played with women’s soccer balls, and the men played with their own balls.

gilbar म्हणाले...

ALL games are played with sticks and balls (a hockey puck is a frozen ball).
ergo.. Soccer is NOT a game.. it is a wast off time.

(real football has sticks,, the ENTIRE point of the game is to move those sticks

What about Basketball you say? enough said, i say! basketball was invented to be able to do something inside a gym during the winter.. Basketball is just gym class

Big Mike म्हणाले...

There are plenty of Americans who would say that the victory of Spain was due to the toxic influence of Megan Rapinoe on the American team.

Before I pile on Luis Rubiales and Jorge Vilda I would like to see a dispassionate analysis of what they had to go through in the macho culture of the Iberian Peninsula to recruit, train, and coach an international-class woman’s soccer team. Perhaps it was nothing, as Althouse seems to assume without evidence. Possibly Rubiales and Vilda had to fight for everything that the women had — a place to train, for instance, and the money to play the players. It’s also possible that they barely had to lift a finger. Whatever they did or didn’t do, Rubiales was over the top in his reaction to the women’s victory.

It will come as a rude shock to Althouse, but soccer is a team sport. And teams require coaches who can identify talent, draw out their talent, and see to it that each player knows what to do in any circumstance, given what the other members of the team — and the opponents — are doing. It does not come naturally and one cannot put 11 random good players on the pitch and hope to win.

Iman म्हणाले...

Love Canal!

Rabel म्हणाले...

I've seen that kid somewhere.

rcocean म्हणाले...

Huh? Everyone knows there's only one ball in women's soccer.

Thank GOd the insufferable USA chick team lost. What a bunch of chokers, and anti-American goofball Leftists.

tim maguire म्हणाले...

Did he do anything to any of the women that you don't also routinely see in men's sports? The elated kiss--not so often, but often enough that it doesn't get remarked upon. Embraces, butt pats, etc. happen constantly. Picking a player up and running around--happens all the time after a big play in a big game. More likely to make the highlight reel than the scandal page. What else? Was there something else?

rcocean म्हणाले...

The chick soccer player should have slapped him after he did that. OH wait, since its soccer, dropped to ground and writhed in (fake) pain.

Ladies, if some man sexually touches you in public, SLAP HIM. He'll take, because he knows he's in the wrong.

Clyde म्हणाले...

Senor Rubiales could have a bright future as a Democrat politician. Bienvenidos, Luis! The border is wide open.

Clyde म्हणाले...
ही टिप्पणी लेखकाना हलविली आहे.
cassandra lite म्हणाले...

And to think some people want to kill the much disrespected semicolon as obsolete and superfluous.

The Crack Emcee म्हणाले...

Kirk Parker said...
Crack, John Henry:

What, you're not enthralled by "in football action today, we had another thrilling 0-0 tie between..."?

I was in France, with the French, which made it even more pathetic. Even exhausting. They get all sweaty, and would violently grab each other, and then throw their hands in the air, before slamming themselves down to the ground in defeat. Over and over and over again. Game after game.

I found the whole thing indecent.

"We like to use our thumbs in this country! We pick shit up and we fucking move it around! That's why we're not monkeys anymore! We've EVOLVED!"

Mike (MJB Wolf) म्हणाले...

Great headline you wrote, Althouse! Spanish men are not exactly up to speed on modern expectations for interaction with the fairer sex. (I've spent a LOT of time in northern Spain over the last 20 years)

The Crack Emcee म्हणाले...

Oh, for the record: the guy should go because he does seem a bit "handsy" for the job.

Doug म्हणाले...

Let's get women out of sports and politics

n.n म्हणाले...

Cultural difference?

In ancient Greece, they would sodomize boys and girls to force them to take a knee (groom) to social progress.

#NoJudgment #NoLabels

wildswan म्हणाले...

There was more than one inappropriate kiss. It was this guys hallmark. see these pix.
https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.abcotvs.com%2Fdip%2Fimages%2F13700556_Jenni-Hermoso-Kiss-IMG-2.jpg%3Fw%3D1600&f=1&nofb=1&ipt=246bb90606edcc81a5a63bacf493a1d35e60082e55ea38f5ff10da431cb6d978&ipo=images
https://s3.amazonaws.com/syndication.abcaudio.com/files/2023-08-30/Getty_083023_SoccerHermoso.jpeg

Aren't these in appropriate? I think women are quite familiar with guys who take advantage of situations to go beyond what they could get from how the woman really feels about them. But beyond that this coach had been involved in a scandal. Fifteen women said they wouldn't play on a World Cup Team if he was coach team. Many thought he should lose his job but his good buddy, the League President, wouldn't fire a good fellow like him, Ole his balls, and then the women won and that was due to his Ole balls and so naturally he grabbed them, see pix above. C'mon, they wanted it.

Background:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/aug/28/me-too-women-spain-football-se-acabo-jenni-hermoso

Mikey NTH म्हणाले...

Lord Flashheart was unavailable for comment.

Woof! Woof!

wishfulthinking म्हणाले...

Yeah. Well, according to Rubiales he asked for permission for the "pico" or peck of a kiss. Plus it was Hermoso who came up to him grabbed him and lifted him off his feet in a bear hug first.

Oh, and there are videos (plural) of the exchange.

Plus lots of other videos including one of the the players (including Hermoso) celebrating their championship and encouraging Rubiales to kiss ALL of them.

The Hermoso/Rubiales exchange was done under a moment of exuberance and celebration. There was no second thought about it till the lefty feminazi politicians started their accusations.

Spain is a southern European country where we kiss and hug and hold hands with each other. It is all socially approved within the context of the culture and the situation.

The feminazis in the leftist party are trying to castrate this guy to set an example of the power and control they want to exert over Spanish society.

Rubiales may be scummy but he did nothing wrong here.

mccullough म्हणाले...

Balls is an American term. Did these Spaniards use huevos, cajones, or pelotas? Or did they say balls?

Maybe something was lost in translation.

HoodlumDoodlum म्हणाले...

This is the same sport where, in a moment of exuberance, a US women's player tore off her shirt and was widely praised for that "iconic" form of celebration, right?
I remember endless discussions of the political import of exposing one's sports bra and not holding back, how celebrating in the way men did was a sign that women's soccer was now equally as valuable as men's in the US, and on and on. She was on daytime news shows, she was on SNL, it was a big deal and anyone who in any way, however minor, objected to that particular gesture was labeled a horrible sexist prude and shunned.
Oh well; 1999 is a foreign land, never mind.

Ampersand म्हणाले...

Everyone who didn't emanate from a man's balls, raise your hand.
Jesus, put that hand down!