Barcelona president Joan Laporta charged with bribery in Negreira case - report

Barcelona president Joan Laporta has reportedly been charged with bribery in the latest development regarding the Negreira Case.

Charges of bribery were previously filed in September with former presidents Josep Maria Bartomeu and Sandro Rosell both accused.

Laporta had not been initially mentioned but has now, according to EFE, as the judge has ruled the charges (which relate to his first spell in charge) shouldn’t be time-barred.

Barcelona paid more than €7.3m to firms owned by José María Enríquez Negreira, who was vice-president of the Spanish football federation’s refereeing committee from 1993 to 2018.

Laporta was first at the helm at Barcelona between 2003 to 2010 and the investigating judge Joaquín Aguirre López has now added the club chief to the probe.

The Barca president has always denied any wrong-doing over the Negreira scandal and insisted it’s all a smear campaign.

Laporta and Barca also hit out angrily at Sevilla recently after club officials boycotted the match at Montjuic due to their “complete outrage” over the Negreira affair.

It’s not clear how just this whole ugly and messy business will end, although the Athletic have been talking to experts and believe the most likely outcome, if Barca are found guilty, would be a fine.