According to court documents, Barcelona is facing allegations of bribery, with payments exceeding €7 million made to companies associated with the former vice president of the refereeing committee, Jose Maria Enríquez Negreira.
Alongside Negreira and his son, Javier Enríquez Romero, former Barça presidents Josep Maria Bartomeu and Sandro Rosell are also facing similar charges.
Previously, Barcelona had been accused of corruption in sports, corruption in business, false administration, and the falsification of commercial documents.
Concurrently, Spanish police conducted a search at the offices of the refereeing committee within the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) in Madrid.
No arrests were reported, with the police acting on the orders of Judge Joaquin Aguirre, who is overseeing the investigation.
This legal saga began when a complaint against Barcelona, its former presidents, and the Negreiras was accepted by a Spanish court in March, leading to the initiation of the investigation.
The introduction of bribery charges could potentially accelerate a process that has been ongoing since February, when the payments first came to light.
Under Spanish law, a bribery offense can be established if there is evidence that a public official or authority solicited money or compensation to influence a decision within their jurisdiction.
Barcelona made payments exceeding €7 million to Negreira’s companies between 2001 and 2018 while he held the position of vice president of the refereeing committee. Negreira had previously worked as a referee in the Spanish top-flight football league.
Barcelona President Joan Laporta has defended these payments, asserting that they were made for “technical reports about referees” and denying any allegations of buying referees or attempting to influence their decisions.
However, prosecutors have accused Rosell and Bartomeu of having a prearranged agreement with Negreira, wherein he would take actions to favour Barcelona in referees’ decision-making during the club’s matches and thereby affect the outcomes of competitions.
Rosell served as Barcelona’s president from 2010 to 2014, followed by Bartomeu, who held the position until his resignation in 2020, paving the way for Laporta’s election as his successor in 2021.