There is not only the Rubiales scandal in Spanish football. Another affair, muted since the affair of the forced kiss of the former president of the Federation (RFEF) with the attacker Jenni Hermoso, resurfaced this Thursday. The premises of the football arbitration department were the subject of a search this morning ordered by the courts which are investigating an arbitration scandal involving FC Barcelona.
“Barcelona’s investigating court number 1 today ordered a search of the headquarters of the Technical Committee of Referees” (CTA) as part of the investigation into suspicious payments of money from the Catalan club to Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira , former senior official of Spanish arbitration, indicated the higher court of justice of Catalonia in a press release.
The Civil Guard, responsible for this search in the premises of the CTA located within the football federation in Las Rozas, near Madrid, confirmed to AFP that it was in progress and that no arrests were planned. .
A story of corruption
FC Barcelona, its former presidents Josep Maria Bartomeu and Sandro Rosell as well as Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira and his son were indicted in March in this case. The Barcelona court in charge of the case clarified on Thursday that the offense with which they were accused was that of “corruption”.
Seized by the tax authorities on possible irregularities in the payment of taxes of a company belonging to Enriquez Negreira, the prosecution opened a preliminary investigation in spring 2022 in order to verify the motive and framework of these money payments.