The “Negreira case” has had an enormous global impact, since the payments of up to 7 million euros to the then vice president of the arbitrators for 17 years, Enríquez Negreira, came to light. This is a case that has shaken the foundations of Spanish football in recent months, and that, from what it seems, does not seem like it will end soon, since the investigations continue and new information appears, clarifying a little more what happened at that time.
That is why we bring you all the information and the latest news about one of the most high-profile cases of recent times in Spanish football.
What is the “Negreira case”?
Negreira was a Spanish football referee for 17 years, and later, after his retirement, he became vice-president of the referees, below Victoriano Sánchez Arminio, then president of the Referees Committee. He combined this position with a working relationship that he kept secret with FC Barcelona, until finally, in February 2023, everything came to light. The CAdena Be reported on an investigation by the Prosecutor's Office into alleged payments worth 1.4 million euros that the Barça team had made in favor of a company in the name of Negreira, with the objective, in theory, of receiving arbitration reports. From here, investigations began that reach to the present day, and that still continue. Around twenty Spanish referees have been questioned in recent months to find out how Enríquez Negreira was acting.
What are the latest news on the investigation?
About a year after “the Negreira case” began, The confidential has revealed news about the investigation being carried out by the Civil Guard. According to this media, investigations indicate that the Negreira family organized dinners in a bar they owned in the city of Barcelona after going to the Camp Nou to direct the soccer matches that they had to referee. But this did not stop there, and these dinners were accompanied by subsequent karaoke and trips in luxury cars through the Catalan city. Furthermore, the Spanish referee Jaime Latre declared that this happened with the majority of referees who directed Barcelona.
In the same way, The world has reported that these events were considered protocol acts or “a simple deference” to the referee team on duty. Thus, Judge Joaquín Aguirre has considered that Negreira, from his position as Vice President of the referees, controlled the appointments of the referees to favor those closest to him and ensure that they directed the matches of greatest importance or relevance.
Finally, this Spanish media reports that the last Compliance officials at the Catalan club have confirmed that an internal investigation was never opened into the million-dollar payments that the club made to the Vice President of the referees and his son, who was also involved.
How can this whole case affect FC Barcelona?
So far, FC Barcelona has not received sporting sanctions since the payments, despite being considered “very serious infractions”, have expired under the Sports Law. There was talk of a possible sanction in LaLiga, but so far none of that has taken place.
However, UEFA opened its own investigation shortly after everything blew up in February 2023, for allegedly violating its legal framework with these payments. At the European level, the facts would not have prescribed, and although the organization remains waiting, it is not ruled out that there could be a sporting punishment for the Barça team for the extraordinary payments to the former Vice President of the Referees Committee.
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