Actual Madrid will facet towards Barcelona within the authorized proceedings that the rival is going through over its funds of thousands and thousands of euros over a number of years to an organization that belonged to the vice chairman of Spain’s soccer refereeing committee, Madrid stated Sunday after an pressing board assembly.
The choice got here two days after prosecutors formally accused Barcelona of alleged corruption in sports activities, fraudulent administration and falsification of mercantile documentation. An investigating decide will determine whether or not the accusations ought to result in prices.
“Actual Madrid needs to precise its utmost concern relating to the gravity of the information and reiterates its confidence within the authorized system,” Madrid stated in an announcement after the board assembly. “The membership has agreed that, in protection of its reputable rights, it should seem on the trial when the decide opens it as much as the affected events.”
It was the primary time Madrid formally weighed in on the matter. Different golf equipment had already expressed their issues over the Barcelona funds, as did the Spanish league and the Spanish soccer federation. The league additionally deliberate to take motion towards Barcelona within the authorized proceedings.
Barcelona has been below scrutiny for the reason that funds to the committee official grew to become public final month. The funds had been initially investigated as a part of a tax probe into the corporate.
Barcelona has persistently denied any wrongdoing or battle of curiosity, saying it paid for technical reviews on referees however by no means tried to affect their selections in video games.
Prosecutors stated in court docket paperwork seen by The Related Press that the funds by the membership added as much as 7.3 million euros ($7.7 million) from 2001-18. They added that this “amount was not justified as a result of it was not foreseen within the statutes of the membership nor permitted by its common meeting (of membership members).”
Prosecutors alleged that the previous vice chairman of the committee, José María Enríquez Negreira, “in change for cash, was to hold out acts tending to favor Barcelona soccer membership within the decision-making means of referees within the video games performed by Barcelona, and within the outcomes of the competitions.”
There’s to date no proof that referees or sport outcomes had been truly influenced.