BARCELONA (Reuters) – Joan Laporta, president of FC Barcelona soccer club, said on Monday all payments made to a company owned by a senior refereeing official were transparent and came in exchange for advisory and not to get any illegal sporting advantage.
A Barcelona court agreed to take on the case last week after prosecutors filed a complaint over what they alleged were payments of 7.3 million euros ($7.95 million) from 2001 to 2018 to firms owned by Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira.
Laporta said there was a media campaign to discredit the club.
(Reporting by Joan Faus and Inti Landauro)
