Barcelona have welcomed the news that allegations of bribery and payments to the referees’ committee will no longer be included in the ‘Negreira case‘.
The Catalan club had been accused of attempting to influence refereeing decisions after it was revealed that payments were made over several years to Jose María Enriquez Negreira, the former vice-president of the Technical Committee of Referees (CTA).
Barcelona has consistently denied these allegations, but a judge had initially ruled that the club would face bribery charges.
However, The Barcelona High Court has now overturned this decision, with the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office already opposing an investigation into alleged bribery by individuals who did not have the necessary public official status to commit such an offence.
A statement issued by the Liga giants on the club’s official website reads: “FCB is satisfied with today’s ruling by the Barcelona High Court insofar as it confirms the approach defended by the Club and rules out the hypothesis of the alleged crime of bribery.
We maintain our conviction that through the courts we will be able to definitively clarify the facts that are the subject of the complaint and prove the Club’s absolute innocence.”
In Catalunya, it is asserted that the payments in question were for technical and scouting reports on referees and players. Club president Joan Laporta has previously provided documentation to support this claim.
Despite presenting this evidence earlier, the Blaugrana have only now been officially cleared of the allegations.