Tension is rising between Real and Barça, seven days before the Clasico. For the first time since the eruption of the arbitration scandal and the accusations of corruption that have shaken FC Barcelona for several weeks, Real Madrid broke their silence on Sunday, asking to “be part of the investigation procedure” as “injured party”.
This Sunday, an extraordinary meeting of the management committee of the Madrid club was held. The objective was to react to the indictment by the Spanish justice of Barça and several of its former leaders. An indictment for “corruption”, “breach of trust” and “false commercial records” in the case of suspicious payments of money from the Catalan club to Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira, former senior official of Spanish arbitration, also for follow-up.
In a statement, Real Madrid expressed “its deep concern about the seriousness of the facts”, and agreed that “to defend its legitimate interests, it will ask to be part of the investigation procedure when the judge opens it to the parties. harmed”. In French law, this is similar to the constitution en partie civile.
Barca deny any irregularity
These proceedings, decided by the Barcelona public prosecutor’s office, target Barça as a legal entity, as well as Josep Maria Bartomeu, head of FC Barcelona between 2014 and 2020, and Sandro Rosell, president of the Catalan club between 2010 and 2014. Oscar Grau and Albert Soler, members of Mr Bartomeu’s former team, are also being prosecuted.
“FC Barcelona has obtained and maintained a strictly confidential verbal agreement with José Maria Enriquez Negreira so that, in his capacity as vice-president of the technical arbitration committee and in exchange for money, the latter may carry out actions tending to benefit FC Barcelona. in the decision-making of the referees, ”explained the prosecution on Friday.
Seized by the tax authorities on possible irregularities in the payment of taxes by a company belonging to Enriquez Negreira, the prosecution had opened a preliminary investigation in the spring of 2022 in order to verify the reason and the framework for these payments of money. According to the prosecution, the Catalan club paid a total of more than 7.3 million euros to José Maria Enriquez Negreira, former referee and ex-vice president of the technical arbitration committee of the Spanish football federation between 1994 and 2018. Both Barca and Mr Negreira have denied any irregularities.
