Real Madrid president Florentino Perez slams Barcelona over €8m questionable referee dealings

Perez addressed the yearly general assembly and talked about various topics.

Florentino Perez, the club’s president, addressed the General Assembly of Delegate Members before Real Madrid’s match versus Elche. The Real Madrid spokesperson had the opportunity to provide an update on a variety of topics, including the club’s finances and future developments.

Florentino Perez gave an unrestrained statement at Real Madrid’s Assembly of Representative Members on Sunday, adding fire to the already boiling Negreira dispute.

The room didn’t need to warm up after the club president publicly challenged FC Barcelona’s long-standing payments to former referees chief Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira.

For over a year, the Negreira scandal has dominated Spanish football. Investigators are looking into Catalan’s payments to entities connected to Negreira, totalling over €7.3 million between 2001 and 2018.

Real Madrid president Perez once again brings focus back to the Negreira case

When questioned about the most recent developments in the case, Pérez didn’t hold back.

”The level of Spanish refereeing is also unacceptable. It’s a disgrace that FIFA didn’t select a single one of the 35 Spanish on-field referees,” he said.

“And of course, it’s also unacceptable that Barcelona, ​​for whatever reason, paid the vice-president of the referees’ association more than 8 million euros for at least 17 years. He held important positions, and this period coincides, coincidentally, with Barcelona’s best results in our country.”

Barcelona maintain that they were only purchasing “technical reports” to aid in the analysis of referees. But prosecutors fear something far more serious: possible attempts to sway competition results.

When Negreira quit his job in 2018, the payments abruptly halted. This fact has raised questions as the investigation into potential active and passive corruption proceeds. Barcelona are steadfast in their denial of any manipulation of the game.

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