21 of the 23 world champions who resigned from the Spanish team on August 25 will not return to the team despite the resignation of Luis Rubiales as president of the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) and the dismissal of Jorge Vilda as coach, according to they announced in a statement.
The new coach, Montse Tomé, will now have to choose between not having them on the list that she must announce this Friday at an unknown time – the press conference was postponed – or calling them anyway and demanding a possible sanction.. The team's closest goal is qualification for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
“We must have zero tolerance, for our partner, for ourselves and for all women,” they dictated in a document with a position similar to that already expressed after the victory in the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand and Rubiales' non-consensual kiss. Jenni Hermoso. Among their demands is the resignation of the current president of the RFEF, Pedro Rocha, as well as the restructuring of the organizational chart of women's football, the presidency, the general secretary, the communication department and the integrity directorate.
“The changes that have occurred are not enough for the players to feel in a safe place, where women are respected, there is a commitment to women's football and where we can give our maximum performance,” they claim.
Furthermore, they recognize that they have tried to “convey clear and well-argued reasons that we understand are necessary to be able to carry out our work”, emphasizing that they have “zero tolerance for those people who, from a position within the RFEF, have had, incited, hidden or applauded attitudes that go against the dignity of women.
The text has 39 signatories, 27 of the 30 called for the World Cup pre-list and the 12 who resigned last year. Of those 30, Claudia Zornoza and Athenea del Castillo, Real Madrid footballers, and Sheila García, from Atlético, who in principle would be at Tomé's disposal, have not signed.
In an Instagram post, Zorzona stated that “I had already made the decision to retire from the national team before the World Cup and I think there is no better way to do it than with the title we have won.”. “It is time to fully concentrate on my goals with Real Madrid and allow myself the breaks that I have not had in recent years as an international player,” she added, insisting on “expressing my solidarity with my teammates and wishing that the structure of the entire Selection change once and for all, living up to our achievements so we can only talk about football.”