In relation to the investigation involving his forcible kiss on Jenni Hermoso’s lips following the Women’s World Cup final, former Spanish football federation president Luis Rubiales is required to appear in court on Friday.

In order to “be heard as an accused” and to answer charges of “sexual assault,” Rubiales has been ordered to appear before an examining magistrate at 1200 local time (1000 GMT) on Wednesday.

Following Spain’s victory in Sydney on August 20, the 46-year-old kissed Hermoso; she claims it wasn’t consensual, but Rubiales swears it was.

Read Also:Rubiales Resigns As Spain FA President After Hermoso Kiss Saga

On Monday, Spanish prosecutors filed a lawsuit against Rubiales alleging “crimes of sexual assault” and “coercion,” which Judge Francisco de Jorge of the National Court accepted.

A non-consensual kiss falls within the criminal category of sexual assault, which encompasses all forms of sexual violence, according to a recent change to the Spanish penal code.

According to authorities in the public prosecutors’ office, the punishment for a forced kiss can be anything from a fine to four years in jail.

On Sunday, Rubiales resigned from his position as head of the Spanish Football Federation, but he didn’t stop defending the kiss.

“I have faith in the truth and I will do everything in my power so that it prevails,” Rubiales wrote in an open letter.

In a statement posted on social media, Hermoso, 33, a player for the Mexican club Pachuca, claimed the unwelcome kiss left her feeling “vulnerable and like the victim of an assault.

” She also called it “an impulsive, macho act, out of place, and without any type of consent on my part.”

As soon as the controversy over the kiss started, she said Rubiales pressured her to defend him.

According to the prosecution, this might have been constituted coercion.