Teresa Rivero, the only female president of a professional soccer club in Spain, resigned at Rayo Vallecano, no longer able to stand the insults from fans of the struggling second-division team.

"The decision is firm," Rivera's son and club managing director, Alvaro Ruiz Mateos, said Monday. "My mother is going. The family is tired of her being insulted and being told 'Teresa, leave now.'"

Rivero who has run the Madrid-based team for 11 years, made the decision a day after she was showered with insults after Rayo's 5-2 defeat against Numancia, which left the club in 17th place in the 22-team second division.

Open criticism of Rivero by Rayo fans began last year when it became apparent the team was set for demotion after four seasons in the first division.

Its spell in the Primera Division was the club's best ever, with the team reaching the quarterfinals of the UEFA Cup in 2001. Back then, Rivero's popularity was so great fans voted to name the club's stadium after her.

Rivero, a mother of 13 children and dozens of grandchildren, took over Rayo from her husband Jose Maria Ruiz Mateos, a controversial Spanish businessman. His powerful company, Holdings Rumasa, was expropriated by the Spanish government in 1983.

The Ruiz Mateos family owns 95 percent of Rayo's shares. It was not immediately known who would replace Rivero as president.

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