Barcelona payment to vice president of referees “not normal”, says Florentino Perez
Real Madrid president Florentino Perez has slammed La Liga and Barcelona for their actions around what is now called the Negreira case.
Perez was giving an address to Madrid’s General Assembly of Delegate Members. The Negreira case is the matter covering the period between 2001 and 2018, during which Barcelona paid more than €8m to Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira, the former vice president of Spain’s Technical Committee of Referees (CTA).
Barcelona have insisted the payments were for scouting reports and refereeing advice. Negreira has also denied wrongdoing. The case remains under investigation by Spanish authorities.
Perez slammed La Liga for not taking the issue more seriously.
“It’s not normal that Barcelona have paid the vice president of referees more than €8m for at least 17 years, whatever the reason,” Perez said. “I repeat: whatever the reason, it’s not normal.”
Madrid’s president said Negreira’s position in the refereeing hierarchy, and that the timeframe the payments were made corresponded with “Barcelona’s best sporting results in our country”. He said that meant the overlap “cannot be dismissed”.
Perez also cited statistics he claimed showcased just how much of an imbalance there was in refereeing decisions over the same period.
“Real Madrid had a net balance of two red cards in 2021, and Barcelona, 61 red cards,” said Perez, discussing the number of times a club’s opponents are awarded a red card, versus the club receiving one themselves.
“That’s a difference of no less than 59. On the other hand, during the same period, the balance in Europe is almost identical: +12 for Barca and +13 for Madrid.
“Bayern and Dortmund have the same balance, and so do the major leagues. The red card balance during the Negreira period at Barcelona was +49 and at Real Madrid, -1. Draw your own conclusions.
“Fran Soto has asked us to move on and forget the ‘Negreira case’. Who is going to forget it? The reality is that they are still there. It’s a situation that prevents them from acting with neutrality.”
The Madrid president also criticised La Liga’s failed attempt to stage an official league match abroad. Barcelona were going to be one of the first two La Liga clubs to play overseas, facing Villareal in Miami.
“It is not normal for the president of La Liga and the president of the Spanish Football Federation, who are responsible for ensuring the integrity of the competition, to promote a match that distorts the league,” said Perez.
“It is not normal for them to support Barcelona having the advantage of playing one fewer match on their opponents’ home ground.
“Not even their captain, Frenkie de Jong, thinks it’s normal. And it’s also not normal that La Liga supports two teams who receive additional financial incentives for playing in Miami, and yet we have to listen to Mr Tebas comparing this nonsense to the global spectacle staged by the NFL at the Bernabeu.”
