FC Barcelona has clarified that UEFA has not opened a new disciplinary case against the club regarding the Negreira affair. The European investigation launched in 2023 remains ongoing and will now incorporate the substantial documentation submitted by Real Madrid.

The Catalan club issued a statement on Tuesday to counter reports suggesting a reactivation of the procedure. "UEFA has not opened any new procedure against FC Barcelona," Barcelona said. "The procedure was initiated in 2023 with the appointment of two investigators who have since carried out the actions they deemed appropriate." The club stressed this process was never closed, so it cannot be described as a reopening.

UEFA confirmed it had received from Real Madrid "a substantial amount of documents related to the ongoing investigation against FC Barcelona". The European body stated its ethics and discipline inspectors will analyse this material within the framework of their ongoing review. To date, these investigators have not forwarded the new documentation to Barcelona nor made any fresh requests of the club.

Real Madrid, for its part, justified its submission. "The denunciation presented by our club incorporates abundant documentation and evidence regarding facts of extraordinary gravity, which directly affect the integrity of the competition and trust in the refereeing system," the Madrid club said. It urged the investigation to proceed with maximum speed.

The parallel judicial case in Spain, which examines payments totalling over seven million euros to entities linked to former Technical Committee of Referees vice-president José María Enríquez Negreira between 2001 and 2018, continues. Barcelona maintains the payments were for technical advisory work and referee reports.

While this off-field process unfolds, the team's on-pitch performance remains flawless. The team arrives on a five-game winning streak, most recently a 1-3 victory at Sevilla where Raphael Dias Belloli scored a hat-trick. Averaging over 80 minutes of possession per match, controlling the game has been a hallmark of their season.

The club has reiterated it will continue to cooperate with authorities when requested, as it has done since the UEFA investigation began three years ago. The UEFA procedure remains subject to the outcome of the criminal process underway in Spain.

First reported at Record MX