Real Madrid fans turn Santiago Bernabeu into platform for Negreira protest

Real Madrid supporters used their Champions League match against Leipzig to take their campaign against Barcelona over the Negreira case beyond Spain, displaying an English-language banner at the Santiago Bernabeu.

The message, which appeared during the second half, read: “No impunity for Negreira.”

The protest was designed to bring the Madrid fans’ position to a wider European football audience and keep the allegations surrounding Barcelona in the spotlight outside Spain.

Television cameras captured the banner, while it was also shown on the stadium’s giant screens, allowing it to be seen around the ground’s 360-degree display system.

The banner appeared alongside chants directed at Barcelona and figures within Spanish football, according to Madrid-based newspaper AS.

Catalan newspaper Sport published a video of the display on X, writing: “The ‘Negreira case’ banner returns to the Bernabeu! This time, the message appears in English: ‘No impunity for Negreira’.”

The supporters also chanted: “Laporta keeps paying”, “Tebas, leave now” and “Barcelona… corruption”.

Other chants accused the Spanish Football Federation of corruption, while one repeated the phrase: “Negreira is still refereeing.”

The banner and the accompanying protests remained in place for about five minutes. They were taken down when Arda Guler scored Real Madrid’s second goal, bringing one of the most prominent fan-led messages of the match to an end.

The demonstration forms part of a wider effort by Real Madrid to ensure the Negreira case remains under scrutiny beyond Spanish football.

The club has also presented the matter to UEFA, seeking to keep it within the attention of football authorities outside Spain.

The Negreira case concerns payments made by Barcelona to companies linked to Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira, a former vice-president of the Technical Committee of Referees. Real Madrid fans have continued to protest against the issue, using the Champions League stage to communicate their condemnation internationally.