A Spanish court on Friday annulled bribery charges against Barcelona related to a refereeing corruption scandal and suspended an investigation into president Joan Laporta.
Former presidents Josep María Bartomeu and Sandro Rosell and others continue to be investigated for alleged sporting corruption, after the club paid a former head of the arbitration group more than 7.3 million euros (around R$40, 8 million at the current price) between 1994 and 2018.
Prosecutors suspect that Barcelona paid a company owned by José María Enríquez Negreira, former vice-president of the Technical Committee of Referees (CTA) between 2001 and 2018, to influence refereeing decisions.
“We maintain our conviction that through justice we can definitively clarify the facts that are the subject of the complaint and prove the Club’s absolute innocence”, reacted Barça in a statement.
The decision to annul the bribery charges was taken because the court understands that Negreira cannot be assigned a public official position during his term as vice-president of the CTA.
The investigation began in March 2023, after the Spanish Tax Agency detected irregularities in tax payments made between 2016 and 2018 by the company Dasnil 95, owned by Negreira.
Barcelona said it paid Dasnil 95 to advise the club on refereeing matters and prepare reports on referees.
Source: Gazetaesportiva
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