Julio Iglesias hit by serious allegations from two former live-in workers – and the reporting is detailed

Some headlines arrive like a tabloid thunderclap.
This one lands differently: slowly, heavily, and backed by a lot of reporting.

Two women who say they worked as live-in staff for Julio Iglesias at his Caribbean properties have made allegations of assault, coercion, and sustained workplace intimidation, describing an environment they say was tightly controlled and routinely degrading. The accounts were published after a three-year investigation by elDiario.es in collaboration with Univision Noticias.

Iglesias is also a former Eurovision contestant, having represented Spain at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1970, where he finished fourth. That appearance marked the beginning of his international career and remains part of the contest’s early history.

The women, identified by pseudonyms in the reporting, describe incidents they say took place in 2021, when one of them was 22.

What the women say happened

According to the investigation, one woman who says she worked in domestic service describes being repeatedly summoned to Iglesias’s room after working hours and pressured into unwanted situations. A second woman, who says she worked as a therapist, describes unwanted contact and humiliating treatment during her working day, alongside a pattern of comments and behaviour she says crossed clear boundaries.

Both accounts also describe a broader atmosphere: restrictions on movement, fear of dismissal, a hierarchy among staff, and rules that allegedly tightened control rather than protecting workers.

Why this report has travelled so fast

This didn’t spread because it’s “shocking”. It spread because it’s specific.

The journalists involved say they interviewed 15 former workers across different periods (from the late 1990s to 2023), and reviewed documentary material including messages and other records.

TelevisaUnivision’s corporate statement also describes the investigation as centring on alleged conduct in 2021 at multiple residences.

That doesn’t prove anything by itself, but it explains why so many outlets have treated the reporting as significant rather than disposable noise.

Responses so far

elDiario.es and Univision say they repeatedly attempted to contact Iglesias and his legal representation without receiving answers before publication.

Reuters reports that Iglesias has not publicly responded, and that Sony declined to comment.

There is also at least one denial from a person identified in the reporting as a former supervisor, who dismissed the allegations.

What happens next

Reuters reports Spanish authorities have opened preliminary proceedings related to the allegations, under confidentiality rules.

Meanwhile, the wider public conversation has already started doing what it always does: turning a serious set of claims into a culture-war football. That part is depressingly predictable.

The only thing worth adding here is the boring but vital line: these are allegations, and the reporting lays out what the women say happened, what documentation journalists say they’ve reviewed, and what has (and hasn’t) been answered so far.

Source: Eldiario