Spanish Football Federation Elects Rafael Louzan As New President

On Monday, Rafael Louzan was elected president of Spain’s Football Federation (RFEF) by the general assembly, marking a new chapter after over a year of turmoil within the organization following the ousting of former president Luis Rubiales and his close associate Pedro Rocha.

Head of Galicia’s regional FA, Louzan, received 90 votes to beat Valencian FA chief Salvador Gomar, who garnered only 43 votes in a two-way race following a last-minute withdrawal of Extremadura FA’s head Sergio Merchan.

Rubiales is currently facing a corruption investigation and is scheduled to stand trial in February for sexual assault related to his unsolicited kiss of player Jenni Hermoso after Spain’s victory at the 2023 Women’s World Cup in Sydney.

His temporary successor, Rocha, received a two-year ban due to irregularities.

Last April, the Spanish government created a special committee to oversee the governing body until it held new elections.

Louzan, too, has had legal problems that could plague the RFEF’s hopes of starting with a clean slate.

In May 2022, he was found guilty of malfeasance in a case involving a contract to improve a football pitch in the city of Morana.

Although he was cleared of fraud charges, the sentence barred him from holding public office for seven years.

Louzan has denied any wrongdoing and filed an appeal, which enabled him to run for the presidency of the RFEF. The Supreme Court is set to hear the appeal on February 5.

However, the joint bid with Portugal and Morocco, as well as Uruguay, Argentina, and Paraguay, was officially confirmed as tournament hosts by world football’s governing body last week.