On Friday, the football club Barcelona was charged with corruption by Spanish prosecutors due to payments made by the club to a company owned by a former refereeing chief, Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira.
Two former presidents of the club, Josep Maria Bartomeu and Sandro Rosell, as well as Negreira, face the same charge. The alleged payments were made by Barcelona to Negreira’s company in exchange for verbal advice regarding referees.
Current Barcelona boss, Joan Laporta, recently denied any involvement in buying referees. However, reports suggest that the club paid approximately 6.5 million euros ($6.9 million) to Negreira’s firm between 2001 and 2018.
If Barcelona are found guilty, they might lose their place amongst the Spanish Contingents for the UEFA Champions League next season.