Barcelona president confirms the club has filed 20 lawsuits for defamation regarding the Negreira case

Joan Laporta’s press conference today has been gaining traction across Spanish footballing media as the Barcelona president addresses the accusations of corruption over the Negreira scandal.

Investigations earlier this year had accused Barcelona of paying €7.5 million to Enriquez Negreira, the former vice president of the referee’s committee, for insights and even result manipulation. But Laporta has viciously struck down the allegations, citing Barça’s stance of non-involvement in the matter.

But in addition to denying the allegations, Laporta has also launched scathing attacks on Real Madrid, Javier Tebas and all the entities who have accused Barcelona during his while.

Laporta has said there could be consequences for trying to defame Barcelona, even confirming that the club had filed 20 lawsuits for defamation.

“We have already sent 20 lawsuits against people who have been defaming the club. They are not exclusively journalists, but people who have been attacking Barça with a false hypothesis,” Laporta said (h/t Barça TV+).

The Barcelona president has confirmed there might be ‘astronomical compensations’ for defaming Barcelona, so the confirmation of 20 lawsuits is indeed a power move by the club as it looks to strike down accusers.

Laporta’s comments also indicate that Barcelona are very much keen on not only targeting official entities such as La Liga president Javier Tebas and Real Madrid but also journalists who have played a key role in propagating the ‘theories’.

Barcelona may even file for more defamation cases by the end of the season, but it is imperative that the club put out proper evidence to back its stance. The coming months could be vital for the club.