Real Madrid president Florentino Perez revives Barcelona referee bribery scandal

Real Madrid president Florentino Perez has ignited an almost “dead” bribery scandal, claiming that Barcelona paid La Liga referee Jose Maria Enríquez Negreira and other referees over €8 million in total during 17 years.

Negreira was a former professional football referee and the ex-vice president of the Royal Spanish Football Federation’s (RFEF) Technical Committee of Referees (CTA) from 1994 to 2018.

The Madrid president pointed to the perceived injustice in Barca’s “best sporting era”, coinciding with the alleged payments.

Los Blancos’ chief further pointed out that there was a significant imbalance in red cards issued to the two rival clubs during the period, stating that the situation is “not normal”.

Speaking at the latest Assembly of Representative Members, Perez used his speech to target several major bodies, including UEFA, La Liga, and, specifically, his arch-rivals, Barcelona.

According to Marca, the Madrid president took the opportunity to spark the controversy surrounding Barca’s referee scandal, where the reigning La Liga champions were accused of paying approximately €8.4 m ($9.7m) to referees in the Spanish top flight within 17 years, between 2001-2018.

The “Negreira case”, as it is often known, began following accusations in 2023. Barcelona paid Negreira millions over more than a decade, insisting the former vice-president of the referees’ committee was merely providing “technical reports and advice” on officiating.

Both Barcelona and Negreira fiercely denied any bribery, yet the investigation into alleged sporting corruption remains very much active.

Perez has reignited the fire, declaring the payments “not normal” and specifically questioning how Barcelona’s dominance coincided with years of funding a top refereeing official.

“It’s not normal that Barcelona has paid the vice president of referees more than €8 million for at least 17 years, whatever the reason,” Perez denounced before the members.

“I repeat: whatever the reason, it’s not normal.”

He continued to say that Negreira held “a key position in the refereeing hierarchy,” responsible for referee promotions and demotions.

“A period that coincides, coincidentally, with Barcelona’s best sporting results in our country,” added Perez.

The Madrid president used charts and data to back up his claims;

“Real Madrid had a net balance of two red cards in 2021,” he explained. “And Barcelona, 61 red cards. 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.”