Laporta, Luis Enrique, and Ernesto Valverde called to testify in Negreira case

The judge investigating the so-called ‘Negreira case’ involving payments from FC Barcelona to the former vice president of the Referees’ Technical Committee, José María Enríquez Negreira, has cited Barça president Joan Laporta and former managers Luis Enrique and Ernesto Valverde to testify in the case, according to Spanish public news agency EFE. 

In a ruling, which EFE reports to have seen, the investigating judge in the Barcelona court has summoned the three to testify as requested by the prosecution. As of yet, no date has been set for them to give their witness statements.

Such statements would provide additional context for the investigating authorities, and does not mean that Laporta, Luis Enrique, or Ernesto Valverde are accused or charged with anything, per this ruling alone. 

The judge considers their statements “necessary” for the investigation, after prosecutors said their testimony would be “especially relevant” in a report sent in May. 

The previous judge in charge of the Negreira case, Joaquín Aguirre, had indicted current Barça present Joan Laporta in the case, although the Barcelona Court of Appeals cleared him due to the statute of limitations. Laporta was previously in charge of the Catalan club between 2003 and 2010. 

Prosecutors consider Laporta’s appearance as a witness in court relevant "so that he can testify about the motive behind the payments made to the holding companies managed" by the Negreira family, such as Dasnil 95, Nilsad SPC, and Soccercam SL.

Former FC Barcelona presidents Josep Maria Bartomeu and Sandro Rosell will testify as people interested in the corruption case. 

Both former leaders are part of the investigation into the alleged payments made by Barça for 18 years to Enríquez Negreira and his son, Javier Enríquez Romero. The judge is investigating the alleged €7.5 million.

However, both were given dates to testify in June 2025, but both sessions were suspended as their lawyer had other appointments previously set.

Rosell and Bartomeu had already been charged with corruption back in March 2023 regarding these alleged payments.

Back in May, a court in Barcelona ruled that the jury could not investigate FC Barcelona on bribery charges as the vice president of the referees' team was not a public employee. Therefore, the case could only continue as sports corruption.

Negreira was the vice president of the CTA between 1994 and 2018.

Negreira payments case

In March 2023, prosecutors accused FC Barcelona, Negreira, two former Barça presidents, Sandro Rosell and Josep Maria Bartomeu, and two former Barça directors, Òscar Grau and Albert Soler, of corruption.  

The letter submitted to the court accused Barça of having "reached and maintained a strictly confidential verbal agreement with the accused Negreira, so that, in his capacity as vice president of the CTA and in exchange for money, he would carry out actions tending to favor FCB in the decision-making of the referees in matches that the club played, and thus in the results of competitions." 

The fact that the charges made are 'continuous,' as opposed to a one-off event, means that the potential penalties could be even larger. 

Current Barça president Joan Laporta has fervently denied the club have ever cheated: "Barça has never carried out any action with the objective or the intention of altering competitions or obtaining any competitive advantage." 

Listen to our Filling the Sink podcast episode published on April 29, 2023 to learn more about it.

On February 15, 2023, FC Barcelona released a statement acknowledging the payments for external services, as reported by Cadena Ser network broadcast.

Barcelona have attempted to explain that the payments were for reports, sometimes delivered audiovisually and sometimes verbally, about the characteristics of referees in charge of their games, but the size of the payments involved continues to raise eyebrows.