Laliga President, Javier Tebas
Barcelona has been warned by La Liga president Javier Tebas after they were charged with ‘continuous sporting corruption’ by Spanish prosecutors.
The charges stem from an ongoing investigation into alleged payments to Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira, the former vice president of Spain’s refereeing committee.
Negreira is said to have received roughly €7m from Barcelona between 2001 and 2018 in exchange for information and analysis of match officials that could have favored the club.
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The charges brought against Barcelona include former presidents Sandro Rosell and Josep Maria Bartomeu, along with three other members of staff, with prosecutors alleging that the club attempted to fix matches with Negreira’s influence and advice.
“Through presidents Rosell and Bartomeu, Barcelona reached and maintained a strictly confidential verbal agreement with the defendant Negreira, so that, in his capacity as vice-president of the refereeing committee and in exchange for money, he would carry out actions aimed at favouring Barcelona in the decision making of the referees in the matches played by the club, and thus in the results of the competitions,” Spanish prosecutors said.
The case has also prompted UEFA to investigate the matter with a view to banning Barcelona from next season’s Champions League.
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However, Tebas has stated that it would be difficult to impose sporting sanctions on the club since the payments were allegedly made over three years ago, beyond the league’s threshold.
Tebas demanded that Barcelona provide an explanation for their actions, warning that the news of the investigation will continue to come out, and silence from the club would only fuel suspicion.
“We need explanations. If they are calm and keep the explanations to themselves, I think they should be worried.
“The news that is coming out, and more will continue to come out because it is inevitable. I think there should not be silence,” Tebas said.
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