January 13 – Barcelona’s signing of Brazilian forward Neymar last June has attracted intense attention from the Spanish courts following a complaint by Barcelona club member Jordi Cases, who wants clarification of how the €57.1 million fee was distributed.
Santos received €17.1 million, but questionmarks have been raised over the remaining €40 million. Court documents show the €40 million as being paid to the Neymar family business, Neymar and Neymar, but more information is being requested. The complaint accuses Barcelona president Sandro Rosell of misappropriation of funds and demands to know the “real destination” of that money.
The original complaint was filed at the end of December with the club initially being given five days to supply documentation by the judge.
Spanish prosecutor Jose Perals said that the contracts shown to the courts by the club support “doubts raised in the complaint over the signing”.
Perals wants the National Audience, Spain’s highest criminal court, to launch a judicial investigation into the complaint. He says that the contracts, shown to the judge under court order, give conflicting information as to what the €40 million was paid for,
“All this justifies at least an investigation into whether the allegations in the complaint are true,” he said.
Barcelona has declined to give full details, citing a need for confidentiality.
The prosecutor said contracts shown to the court by the club on the judge’s orders contained conflicting details about what exactly the €40 million euros were paid for. The judge had also requested the club’s financial records from the previous three years to cover the period during which negotiations for Neymar’s transfer took place.
Barcelona has maintained from the start that there has been no misappropriation of funds. “It is a charge without basis,” said Rosell.
The prosecutor called on the judge to ask FIFA for more documentation, including contracts from Santos. Barcelona responded by saying that they have already provided this paperwork and they will only receive the same information from FIFA again.
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