Negreira case: Javier Tebas rejects claims La Liga failed to act

La Liga president Javier Tebas has rejected a report claiming that UEFA received no information from Spanish authorities or football bodies about the Negreira case during the 44 months since it became public.

El Debate reported that the Spanish government, the National Sports Council, the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) and La Liga had not provided UEFA with any information about the case.

Tebas disputed the report in a statement published on his social media accounts. His comments were later reported by Mundo Deportivo.

“What El Debate published is not correct. The dates and documents prove that,” Tebas said.

He said the case became public on 15 February 2023 and that La Liga contacted UEFA six days later.

“On 21 February, just six days later, I sent a letter to UEFA as president of La Liga concerning these facts,” Tebas said. “It included a legal report, documents relating to the payments and a press dossier containing coverage from national and international media.”

Tebas also rejected the suggestion that La Liga had merely taken part in the criminal proceedings.

“It is therefore not true that La Liga restricted itself to participating in the criminal case,” he said.

He added: “We approached UEFA six days after learning of the facts, while others needed years, and months before resigning from the RFEF board.”

Tebas said the information available from La Liga contradicted the account presented by El Debate.

“Before constructing another narrative about alleged inaction by La Liga, it would have been better to check the information with the league,” he said. “The documents exist, carry clear dates and disprove that narrative.”