Ex-RFEF President Luis Rubiales denies making moves to secure Dominican nationality amid corruption probe

Former RFEF President Luis Rubiales expressed his surprise that a warrant had been put out for his arrest on Wednesday, after police raided the Royal Spanish Football Federation headquarters. Rubiales is currently in the Dominican Republic, but his relationship with the Caribbean island goes back long before a seemingly untimely trip.

Rubiales has reportedly expressed that he is willing to return when requested, amid an investigation which saw six other arrests made, and five people placed under investigation. In addition to the RFEF headquarters, several homes were raided, while the Federation has since sacked the head of their legal council, Tomas Cueto.

As per Marca, Rubiales’ has been considering moving himself to the Dominican Republic since 2015, when he began investing in the coutry. They report that Rubiales has been exploring ways in which to gain Dominican nationality, noting that a letter of naturalisation from the government or marriage are the two avenues he could use. It’s a move that Rubiales has been exploring with long time friend and former footballer Nene, Francisco Javier Martín Alcaide.

The Dominican Republic does have extradition agreeements with Spain, although this has been reported as untrue by Marca too. Rubiales himself has since contacted Marca to deny that he is intending or trying to acquire Dominican nationality.