Barcelona face corruption charges for ‘buying referee favours’

In relation to the suspected payments Barcelona made to Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira, a former vice-president of the refereeing committee for Spanish football, the club has been accused of corruption.

According to claims from February, between 2001 and 2018, the Spanish club allegedly paid Negreira and Dasnil 95, a business he owns, a total of 8.4 million euros (£7.4 million).

The Catalan giants and two of its former presidents were accused by Spanish authorities of paying bribes to the senior officiating official in order to sway game outcomes, according to the public prosecutor’s office, which announced the allegations on Friday.

According to Reuters, prosecutors stated that under a secret arrangement and “in exchange for money”, Negreira preferred Barcelona “in the decisions taken by referees in the games played by the team, as well as in the results of the tournaments”.

Also, a senior Barcelona official was quoted as saying that the club anticipated the lawsuit.

The official clarified that the prosecutor’s notion was “nothing more than an absolutely preliminary investigative hypothesis” and that “this is when the judicial probe properly begins.”

The official stated that “the club will completely cooperate with the investigation in all means required” and “reiterates that they have never bought any referee nor have tried to influence any official’s judgments.

Barca denied the claim in a statement last month.

The club also alleged it engaged an external consultant that furnished them with “technical reports relevant to professional refereeing”.

It stated that professional football clubs “common practice” the consultation procedure.

The club, its previous executives, and Negreira were charged with “corruption,” “breach of trust,” and “fake business records,” a Barcelona court heard on Friday.

A judge has not yet made up their mind about taking the case.