After being fined $536,000 for financial misreporting, Barcelona appealed to UEFA’s financial committee, and they have received a response.
Just like the past years, the Catalan giants have been experiencing some turmoil off the field. The regulatory body of European soccer informed them of their FFP violation in July of this year. Not only did Barcelona receive a huge fine, but so did Manchester United.
Xavi Hernandez’s side were fined $536,000, while the Premier League outfit were hit with a $322,000 penalty. Barca were the lone Spanish club to receive a fine in the last audit conducted under the previous Club Licensing and Financial Fair Play agreement, which expired at the end of 2018.
The Financial Fair Play rule was implemented back in 2009 with the intention of protecting football clubs for the long haul by mandating that teams spend only what they can afford.
Financial results from last year included “profits on disposal of intangible assets (other than player transfers) which are not a relevant income under the regulations,” and as a consequence, Barcelona had to pay a fine. The Catalans were so incensed by their sentence that they immediately attempted to appeal the judgment, threatening to go all the way to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) “if necessary.”
Nevertheless, the governing body of European soccer said on Friday that their appeal for a sanction had been denied. UEFA’s rejection of an appeal from the La Liga heavy hitters was not enough to sway the First Chamber of the Club Financial Control Body (CFCB).
In a statement, they stated: “The UEFA Club Financial Control Body (CFCB) Appeals Chamber has taken a decision in the case of the appeal by FC Barcelona (ESP) against the decision issued by the CFCB First Chamber on 13 July 2023.
“The CFCB Appeals Chamber has now decided to reject the appeal lodged by FC Barcelona and to confirm the decision of the CFCB First Chamber.”
Financial difficulties have plagued the Camp Nou great in recent years, despite their undeniable status as one of the world’s most successful and influential athletic organizations.
They were unable to sign Lionel Messi to a new deal in 2021 because of the financial effect of the coronavirus outbreak. Therefore, the Argentine was free to sign with Paris Saint-Germain.
Then, to pay for their summer 2022 spending spree, Barca president Joan Laporta sold off a chunk of the club’s future earnings. Meanwhile, they were restricted to mostly using free transfers and loan agreements to acquire players this summer.
They have lately been at the center of the Negreira controversy, in which the club is accused of paying a former officiating head for insider information and analysis of match officials. As a result, Spanish prosecutors have just filed bribery charges against Barcelona and Laporta.
UEFA hinted that the 2022-23 La Liga winners could face a ban from participating in the UEFA Champions League if they are proven guilty of bribery or match-fixing. While they had threatened to sit out this season, they abandoned those plans during the summer.
Meanwhile, Barcelona are also trying to raise €1.5 billion to reconstruct Camp Nou and the surrounding region, despite the ongoing off-field turbulence.
Photo credit: IMAGO / NurPhoto
