Florentino Perez summoned to Madrid court over Barcelona referee comments

Real Madrid president Florentino Perez and FC Barcelona have been ordered to attend a conciliation hearing in a Madrid court on 25 November, ahead of possible criminal proceedings over alleged defamation.

The hearing follows legal action brought by Barcelona on 12 June in response to comments Perez made in May, when he accused the Catalan club of seeking favourable treatment from referees.

Barcelona said it wanted Perez to withdraw remarks it considered knowingly false, defamatory and harmful to its image and reputation. The club added that it would file a criminal complaint if the conciliation process did not resolve the dispute.

The case centres on comments made by Perez during a news conference on 12 May about the Negreira case.

Spanish courts are investigating payments of up to 7 million euros, made over almost two decades by Barcelona to companies linked to Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira, a former vice-president of Spain’s refereeing committee.

The investigation is examining whether those payments were intended to give Barcelona a competitive advantage. Barcelona denies any wrongdoing and says the money was paid for reports on referees.

A court dismissed bribery charges against Barcelona in 2024.

During his news conference, Perez described the matter as “the most serious case of corruption in football”.

“We could never have imagined Barcelona giving money to the head of the referees,” he said.

Perez also claimed Real Madrid had lost out on league titles as a result of decisions against the club.

“I’ve won seven leagues. I could have won twice as many. The others were stolen from me,” he said.

Barcelona’s legal action is aimed at securing a retraction before any criminal complaint is made, with the November hearing providing the formal opportunity for both sides to seek an agreement.