Court Dismisses Real Madrid’s Request in Negreira Case

Judge Alejandra Gil Llimaha has dismissed Real Madrid’s request, within the context of the investigation into the ‘Negreira case’, to review all audits and due diligence reports conducted by external consulting firms on FC Barcelona’s financial management from 2003 to 2021. The ruling favored former Barcelona president Josep María Bartomeu.

Bartomeu, through his attorney, submitted a statement refusing to provide additional documentation following Real Madrid’s formal request, asserting that the club’s intentions were solely to acquire private documents from the Catalan institution and gain access to privileged information.

The judge stated, “There is no basis to carry out the investigative procedures requested by Procurator Mr. Molina on behalf of Real Madrid CF through documents dated December 22, 2025, and September 26, 2025, with the exception of the testimony of Carlos Naval Biosca, which will take place on April 10, 2026, at 9:45 AM. The party that proposed this testimony is required to provide the witness’s address within two days for citation purposes. On the same day, April 10, 2026, at 10:45 AM, the declaration of FC Barcelona as an investigated party will occur, as the originally scheduled date was suspended due to scheduling conflicts. This ruling can be appealed within three days.”

However, the judge did permit Carlos Naval to testify, noting, “The testimony of Mr. Naval will be accepted as it may be relevant to clarify where actions were taken, what was done, and how the reports issued by contractors paid by FC Barcelona were utilized, as well as how the payments for these reports were approved. The proposal indicates that Mr. Naval was involved in the payment approval process for these invoices over several years. He may also explain, if applicable, the purpose for which the invoices were paid and the types of services being compensated with those payments.”