Barcelona Have Never Bought Referees – Joan Laporta

Barcelona Have Never Bought Referees – Joan Laporta

Barcelona president Joan Laporta has denied accusations that the club have attempted to buy referees or tried to influence refereeing decisions with money.

The Catalan giants were recently accused of receiving years of favors from a refereeing official.

Barcelona reportedly paid José Maria Enriquez Negreira, the former vice-president of the Technical Committee of Referees, €1.6m (£1.4m) between 2016 and 2018.

Laporta has firmly denied accusations that the club bought referees. He has stated that he will hold a press conference to address the matter.

Speaking at a luncheon with Mundo Deportivo, the Barcelona president said: “We have a press conference in which we will talk about this issue.

“Barcelona have never bought referees and Barcelona have never had the intention of buying referees – absolutely never.

“The forcefulness of the facts contradicts those who try to change the story. We are doing well again, nothing is casual. There is a campaign to damage Barcelona’s interests.

“It is a campaign aimed at controlling the club. La Liga does not accept that Barcelona did not sign the contract with CVC.”

Due to the time restriction on sanctions, La Liga has ruled out the possibility of relegation or a points penalty.

According to El Pais, the Spanish Justice Department is planning to file a formal complaint against the club.

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Barcelona will be accused by the prosecutor’s office of “continuous corruption,” with the period 2016 to 2018 allegedly the focus of their investigation.

However, Former club president Josep Bartomeu will also be prosecuted, and the matter will now be decided by a judge.

Meanwhile, Barcelona lead La Liga by nine points, attempting to win their first league title since the 2018-19 season.

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