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By Martin Graham | eleventh Mar 2023
Barcelona are in much more hassle because the authorities have now charged them with corruption within the referee cost scandal.
Information got here out in early 2023 concerning the Catalan giants soliciting the previous vice chairman of refereeing in Spain, Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira, with €7.3 million (£6.4 million) between 2001 and 2018. The cash was reportedly paid to a agency owned by Negreira for causes that have been beforehand unknown.
The membership fought the allegations and launched an announcement in February denying any wrongdoing. In response to the statements, the cash was paid as session charges for “technical reports related to professional refereeing” and known as it “a common practice among professional football clubs”.
The allegations quieted down within the media till Friday evening, when official costs have been introduced to the courts in Spain by prosecutors. The fees claimed that the LaLiga giants did the truth is solicit Negreira for corrupt functions.
The general public prosecutors listed former Barcelona presidents Sandro Rosell and Josep Maria Bartomeu as key figures within the corruption costs. Each males have been underneath fireplace since Joan Laporta took over the membership for his or her dealing with of it, main it to close monetary damage.
These new costs add to what they must take care of as they proceed to face the results of the selections they took after they have been on the helm of affairs for Barcelona at totally different instances.
Prosecutors declare that cash was paid to Negreira to affect outcomes for Barcelona on the pitch in numerous home competitions. The criticism particularly focuses on a cost of €2.9 million that occurred between 2014 and 2018.
Stated cost – made by former presidents Rosell and Bartomeu – have been to seal a “confidential verbal agreement” with Negreira.
A senior Barcelona official, in the meantime, has downplayed the costs as “nothing more than an absolutely preliminary investigative hypothesis” from the prosecutors and that “now is when the judicial investigation properly begins.”
The unnamed Barcelona official additionally added that “the club will fully cooperate with the investigation in all means necessary” and “reiterates that they have never bought any referee nor have tried to influence any official’s decisions.”
Negreira, nevertheless, has instructed the Spanish tax company, the originators of the claims, that Barcelona’s aim with the funds was to have “neutral” referees of their video games, based on El Pais newspaper.
Laporta already has his palms full with Javier Tebas and LaLiga attempting to cease him through the courts from signing gamers and renewing the contracts of already current ones. That is one lawsuit he can’t afford to tackle in the meanwhile, because it threatens to shake the very foundations of one of many only a few fan-owned soccer golf equipment remaining on the planet.
Extra information because the story unfolds.
Martin Graham is an MFF sports activities author
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