Allegation of corruption once morest the Spanish club Barcelona. It is alleged that former Vice President of the Referee Committee, Jose Maria N. Requez Negreira, was paid Rs 57 crore. It was found that Barca tried to influence the referee by paying money to make the match result in their favor.
Sky Sport reported that the transaction took place between 2001 and 2018. In addition to Negreira, the Catalan club’s former presidents Sandro Rosell and Josep Maria Bartomeu and two other unnamed Barcelona officials are also under surveillance, the report said.
The investigation team is looking into Negreira’s bank transactions. Barca’s Europa League fixtures for next season are in doubt amid the investigation. In a similar situation, UEFA bans up to one year.
But Barcelona has denied the allegations of corruption. Barcelona’s response is that taking advice from referees is nothing new and that paying outside experts is common in professional football.
At the same time, Barcelona has made a huge comeback in La Liga, which is jumping with a nine-point lead over Real in the Spanish league. Barca also won the Spanish Supercup this season by beating Real Madrid.
Content Highlights: Barcelona have been charged with corruption