In the past 18 years, Barcelona's glory may have been influenced by referees?

Yamini003

In any competition, the last thing you want is too much involvement with the referees due to potential conflicts of interest. Therefore, most teams maintain a certain distance from referees, as the outcome of a match involves multiple interests. Gestures like giving gifts or trying to please referees are usually avoided. However, the football world was once rocked by a shocking revelation known as "Barçagate," an incident that could have severe consequences if mishandled by Barcelona.

In March of this year, Spanish media suddenly exposed that Barcelona had been paying consulting fees to José Luis Núñez Negrin, the Vice President of the Spanish Referees' Technical Committee, and his son, for a staggering 18 years, from 2001 to 2018. The "consulting fees" amounted to over 7 million euros, stunning all of Europe. It's worth noting that these 18 years coincide with Barcelona's most glorious period, particularly the era of the "MSN" trio, where Lionel Messi, Luis Suárez, and Neymar formed one of the greatest attacking trios in history. They won numerous titles, but all of those honors may now be in jeopardy.

Barcelona has vehemently denied the accusations against them, and club president Joan Laporta has publicly stated that they will work hard to prove they were not involved in bribing referees. However, reports have surfaced that Núñez Negrin, who received the money, allegedly used it to buy gifts for La Liga referees and regularly invited them to dine at restaurants with bills exceeding 2,000 euros per meal. While the direct connections are still under investigation, the accumulating details raise questions.

Currently, Barcelona Football Club has been formally charged by the Barcelona Prosecutor's Office with offenses including commercial corruption, sports fraud, dishonest management, and the forgery of commercial documents. Former Barcelona presidents, Bartomeu and Rosell, among others, have also been charged. UEFA has announced that it will conduct an investigation into the potentially improper conduct surrounding "Barçagate," with further details to be revealed at an appropriate time.

Shri

This kind of bribery exists in many places.

Ritu13

It seems that Barcelona is in serious trouble this time and may not be able to escape the consequences.

Iti911

A few years ago, FC Barcelona was already facing a crisis.