The Negreira case nears resolution with expected court decision

The investigation into the Negreira case has reached its final stage, after Gerard López, the former coach of FC Barcelona Atlètic, testified before Judge Alejandra Gil. The investigation is now technically closed, pending the completion of some procedures before a final decision is made.

Radio "Cadena Ser" reported that the judge is currently waiting to receive financial reports from FC Barcelona before deciding, likely at the beginning of 2027, whether to archive the case or continue it to trial.

During his testimony, López, who managed the reserve team between 2015 and 2018, defended the usefulness of the refereeing reports prepared by Javier Enriquez, the son of José María Enriquez Negreira, former vice president of the Technical Committee of Referees, emphasizing that they were comprehensive and useful, as well as updated with information from the previous match directly for FC Barcelona.

The coach explained that these reports were particularly important during FC Barcelona's participation in the Primera División, which does not have the same television coverage as professional football competitions, making the reports an additional source of information regarding referees.

Tony Alonso, the former administrator of the reserve team for 32 years, previously confirmed that some coaches used these reports, such as Gerard López, while others did not pay attention to them, including Luis Enrique, who focused on matters he could control and did not consider officiating among them.

Real Madrid is still awaiting the financial information it requested from FC Barcelona, after initially rejecting the royal club's request for audits and financial reports covering the period from 2010 to 2021, before the Barcelona regional court agreed to part of the request.

The Negreira case concerns payments made by FC Barcelona over 17 years to the former vice president of the Technical Committee of Referees and his son. This case was revealed by the radio station "Cadena SER" in 2023 and includes investigations into suspicions of committing crimes of mismanagement, document forgery, and sports corruption.