Officially.. Barcelona Requests Reconciliation Before Filing Criminal Complaint Against Perez

Barcelona club announced taking the first legal steps against Real Madrid's president, Florentino Perez, following the statements he made during his press conference on May 12, as well as a media interview he conducted the following day.

Barcelona clarified in an official statement that it has filed a request for prior reconciliation, which is the legal step that precedes filing a criminal lawsuit for defamation under Article 205 of the Spanish Penal Code.

The Catalan club confirmed that the aim of these measures is to compel Florentino Pérez to retract some statements that it described as "false" and which, according to the statement, have damaged the club's image and reputation in the eyes of the public.

Barcelona indicated that if the demands presented during the reconciliation procedures are not met, the club will proceed with filing an official criminal lawsuit against the president of Real Madrid to continue the legal process.

During his election campaign in recent weeks, Pérez made controversial statements in which he referred to the Negreira case, claiming that the Catalan club "stole" many titles and domestic championships by paying bribes to a company owned by José María Enríquez Negreira, the former vice president of the Referees Committee, during the period between 2001-2018.