Rejected! UEFA turns down Spanish FA's request to kick teams out of European football over Luis Rubiales controversy

On Friday, the RFEF sent UEFA a letter requesting that they be expelled from the governing body due to government involvement in the Luis Rubiales controversy in the wake of the president kissing Jenni Hermoso after the World Cup final.

Rubiales has been suspended by FIFA over the incident while Hermoso has since clarified that she did not consent to the kiss, resulting in prosecutors opening a criminal investigation into the president.

The Spanish government has asked Spain's Sports Tribunal (TAD) to suspend Rubiales, something the RFEF says breaches UEFA rules on government interference in national footballing governing bodies.

It appears that Rubiales - and RFEF general secretary Andreu Camps - were willing to use the potential ejection of Spanish teams from the Champions League, Europa League and Europa Conference League to blackmail the Spanish government into not removing him from power.

However, AS reports UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin has rejected the request, symbolically turning his back on Rubiales, who happens to be UEFA's vice-president.

Echoing UEFA's stance, Victor Francos, president of Spain's Higher Sports Council (CSD), assured Spanish clubs that the government is "acting within the regulations as they stand" and that "there is no risk to participation in any of the categories."