Joan Laporta Testifies in Negreira Scandal, Invokes Right to Silence
Barcelona president Joan Laporta testified regarding the 'Negreira case', a scandal that has shaken Spanish football. During his testimony, Laporta chose to invoke his right to silence on certain questions.
Barcelona is accused of paying over 7 million euros to companies linked to JosĂ© MarĂa EnrĂquez Negreira, former vice president of the Spanish refereeing committee (CTA), between 2001 and 2018.
Laporta stated that when he took office in 2003, he was informed of a refereeing consulting service and considered it useful to continue the payments. He argued that Barcelona had no intention of manipulating the competition. He attributed the accusations to a campaign to tarnish Barcelona's reputation.
One striking point was Laporta's response to a question about a 60,000 euro payment to Negreira, which had been recorded as 'aloe vera products'. Laporta replied that he did not remember, as it was a 20-year-old receipt.
Real Madrid president Florentino PĂ©rez commented on the case, expressing doubts about whether the technical reports on referees, for which millions of euros were paid, were useful and whether the coaches even knew about them.