Real Madrid hand UEFA a 50,000-page dossier in Barcelona referee payment case

Real Madrid have submitted a fresh, voluminous file to UEFA linked to the payments Barcelona made to José María Enríquez Negreira, the former vice-president of Spain's referees' committee. The Madrid club argues that the documents contain evidence of extraordinary gravity regarding the integrity of competition and public trust in the officiating system.

Key points from the dossier Real Madrid have sent to UEFA

• Real Madrid describe the documents as evidence of extraordinary gravity connected to Barcelona's payments to Negreira.
• The file is reported to run to more than 50,000 pages and arrives while UEFA's review of the case remains active.
• Barcelona insist the payments were for technical reports and scouting work on referees, not bribes.
• UEFA calls the dossier substantial and says its ethics and disciplinary inspectors will assess it as part of the ongoing review.
• Barcelona state that no new proceedings have been opened and that the matter remains tied to the criminal case in Spain.

What Real Madrid's dossier on the Negreira payments contains

The dispute centres on payments of 8.4 million euros that Barcelona are alleged to have made to Enríquez Negreira between 2001 and 2018. The first signs of these transactions emerged during a tax authority investigation, and the matter has divided Spanish football ever since.

Real Madrid believe the documentation sent to European football's governing body strikes at the heart of confidence in the referee system. In their statement released on Thursday, the club called for the investigation to move forward as quickly as possible to a full conclusion and for decisions to be taken in line with the seriousness of the facts they consider proven.

Barcelona's position: technical reports and no fresh proceedings

Barcelona have repeated since the story broke in 2023 that they have done nothing wrong. According to their account, the money paid to Negreira and his company Dasnil 95 covered consulting work, technical reports and scouting duties on officials, never the buying of favourable treatment from referees.

Barcelona stressed that UEFA has opened no new proceedings and that the files started in 2023 remain active because they were never closed.

Why UEFA's review of the Negreira case is still ongoing

UEFA described the file sent by Real Madrid as substantial and confirmed that its ethics and disciplinary inspectors will study it within the review that remains under way. In June 2023, UEFA's investigators decided Barcelona would not be punished, and the club has continued to compete in European competition since then.

Barcelona added that the UEFA procedures have not been reopened because they were never closed. The club also pointed out that, so far, no new requests for documents have been made and no formal complaint from Real Madrid has been forwarded to them. If that were to happen, the club said it would respond in accordance with the rules.

The Spanish courts and the limits of sporting sanctions

While UEFA reviews the new submission, the case remains alive in the Barcelona courts, where a criminal investigation has been under way since 2023. Barcelona maintain that the European file depends on what the ordinary Spanish justice system decides.

LaLiga president Javier Tebas already warned in March 2023 that Spanish football's governing body could not act because too much time had passed. The case was time-barred under sports law, he explained, but not under criminal law, where the process continues.

Frequently asked questions about the Negreira case and Real Madrid's dossier