Barcelona president Joan Laporta will hold a press conference to explain the club’s involvement in the Negreira scandal.
Barça are alleged to have made several payments to former referee chief Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira for information and analysis on match officials, prompting accusations of bribery. Spanish prosecutors have since opened a case into ‘continuous sporting corruption’.
If Barcelona are found guilty, they could face several sanctions. UEFA are said to be contemplating banning them from next season’s Champions League, while La Liga president Javier Tebas has suggested he could open a case against the club.
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More recently, Tebas called for Laporta to publicly explain Barcelona’s actions.
“We need explanations. If they are calm and keep the explanations to themselves, I think they should be worried. The news that is coming out, and more will continue to come out because it is inevitable. I think there should not be silence,” he said.
It looks as though he will get his wish, with SER Catalunya reporting that Laporta will hold a press conference on Monday in which he will discuss Barcelona’s involvement in the Negreira scandal.
Recent reports from Catalonia claim that Laporta has written to both UEFA and FIFA asking not to impose punishments on Barcelona until they have been legally sanctioned, explaining the club’s involvement in the Negreira scandal privately.
It was claimed last month that Barça could end up suing UEFA for lost revenue if they were to prematurely or unlawfully ban them from the Champions League.
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