February 7 – After years of turmoil within the Spanish FA (RFEF), at last some positive news.
New RFEF chief Rafael Louzan (pictured) will remain in his post after the country’s Supreme Court granted his appeal against a seven-year ban from holding public office.
Louzan was elected in December on a four-year mandate despite the 57-year-old having previously been sanctioned. In May 2022, he was found guilty by a provincial court of malfeasance in a case involving a contract to improve a football pitch in the city of Morana.
Although he was cleared of fraud charges, the sentence barred him from holding public office. He denied wrongdoing and appealed, which allowed him to run for RFEF presidency.
“We must absolve Rafael Louzan (and others) of the crime of administrative prevarication of which they were accused,” said the Supreme Court, staving off yet more embarrassment for a federation engulfed in scandal, with Louzan’s three predecessors all having been forced to step down because of involvement in legal cases, including Luis Rubiales, currently on trial over the ‘kissgate’ scandal.
Angel Maria Villar, one-time bigwig at both FIFA and UEFA, was ousted in 2018 after having been suspended the year previously, when he and his son were arrested on suspicion of corruption, among several other accusations. He was followed by Rubiales, who resigned in disgrace in September 2023 after worldwide outrage at the infamous kiss.
Then came Pedro Rocha, who was suspended for overstepping his duties once he arrived on an interim basis, before he was elected.
According to Thursday’s ruling by the Supreme Court, there was no corrupt practice when Louzan granted an €86,311 subsidy for the renovation of a pitch in Moraña in Pontevedra.
The decision saves the RFEF from having to arrange yet another election. But Spanish sports minister Pilar Alegria said the debacle had besmirched the image of the sport.
“The image the football federation has transmitted has not been particularly positive or constructive,” she said. “If we look back, the last few presidents of the football federation have all finished up because of court cases… I don’t think the fans deserve this.”
Meanwhile, outspoken La Liga boss Javier Tebas has launched another tirade against Real Madrid, this time after the club lodged a letter of complaint against the Spanish league’s referees.
Madrid sent the letter following their 1-0 defeat by Espanyol on Saturday, citing a decision not to award a red card to Espanyol defender Carlos Romero for a foul on Kylian
“They are against everything. That’s the reality,” Tebas told a meeting of LaLiga clubs, the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) and representatives of the Spanish refereeing committee (CTA), which Madrid did not attend. “They have constructed a narrative of victimhood. They have lost their head.”
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