Prosecutors have officially denounced Barcelona and will pursue legal action against the club in light of the ‘Negreira’ referee payment scandal. Prosecutors will go after Barcelona for corruption as shocking referee payments saga shows up.
The city of Barcelona has denounced the club as a legal entity, as well as former presidents Sandro Rosell and Josep MarÃa Bartomeu in an official start to its investigation into the Negreira Case, according to Relevo.
It is alleged that the club paid former vice-president of the Technical Committee of Referees (CTA), Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira, nearly €7 million (£6.2m/$7.4m) from 2001-2018. Barca claim they were only interested in referee scouting reports, although their sporting integrity has also been called into question.
Despite the club’s stance, revelations that Negreira offered to “help with VAR” suggests that there could be more for prosecutors to investigate. If found guilty, Barcelona fear that they could face sporting sanctions, according to Sport.
