La Liga president Javier Tebas is at the centre of a new controversy following allegations that he shared confidential financial information about Barcelona with Athletic Club, allegedly influencing Nico Williams’ decision to reject a summer move to the Catalan giants.
The accusation comes from Miguel Galán, president of Spain’s National Centre for Football Coaches (CENAFE), who claims that Tebas revealed sensitive financial details during a private meeting with Athletic Club.
Galán alleges this information caused doubt within Williams’ camp about Barcelona’s ability to register the player under La Liga’s financial fair play regulations.
In a series of posts on X (formerly Twitter), Galán wrote: “At said meeting, the president of Athletic Club was shown the information from FC Barcelona’s interim financial statements, allowing him to verify that the profit and loss statement did not reflect any amount related to the corporate operation of selling VIP seats.”
He further stated that Tebas presented documentation showing that Barcelona lacked the balance and registration capacity to sign new players, adding: “Confidential financial information about FC Barcelona was provided to Nico Williams, which was exaggerated to generate concern in the player’s family.”
According to Galán, this led to Williams requesting an additional release clause, which Barcelona refused to include, ultimately derailing the transfer.
“The non-signing of Nico Williams is attributed solely to the distrust generated by the president of LaLiga toward the player’s agent, as well as toward the player himself and his family,” he added.
Barcelona had reportedly made Williams, who is of Spanish-Ghanaian heritage, one of their top targets during the summer window.
The 22-year-old forward eventually opted to remain at Athletic Club, extending his contract instead.
Neither Tebas nor La Liga has yet issued a public response to the allegations.
