Barcelona has been accused of paying over £1 million to the former vice president of the Technical Committee of Referees, Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira in a huge corruption scandal.
The accusations levied against the Catalan club are reported to have occurred during the former president, Josep Bartomeu’s reign, from 2016-2018.
Negreira denied that Barcelona received any favourable treatment from officials on the pitch whilst testifying in front of the Prosecutor’s Office.
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🚨 Barcelona allegedly paid the former vice-president of the Referees Commission, José Maria Enriquez, €1.4 million between 2016 and 2018. 🥶💰
(Source: @diarioas) pic.twitter.com/x8jCot4xOv
— Transfer News Live (@DeadlineDayLive) February 15, 2023
He claimed that the payments were for advisory work, teaching players how to interact with referees and giving them tips on individual officials for particular matches. But he is not able to back any of these claims up with evidence.
Barcelona statement does not deny report and insists such payments, described as “advisory”, are normal. They suggest the report is designed to destabilise their season and threaten legal action against those suggesting anything untoward with the payment.https://t.co/MJhjOYTcry
— Colin Millar (@Millar_Colin) February 15, 2023
In a statement released by Barcelona, the club denied any wrongdoing on their part but admitted to hiring the services of Negreira.
According to various reports, Barcelona could face relegation if found guilty.