Spanish football giants FC Barcelona have initiated legal proceedings against Florentino Pérez, president of Real Madrid, over comments the club described as defamatory and damaging to its reputation.
Barcelona announced that it had filed a mandatory conciliation request, the first legal step required before pursuing a lawsuit for slander under Article 205 of Spain’s Penal Code.
The action follows statements allegedly made by Pérez during a press conference on May 12 and in a media interview the following day.
According to Barcelona, the Real Madrid president accused the Catalan club of benefiting from favourable refereeing decisions and suggested that titles had been won through improper influence, referencing the long-running Negreira case.
In a statement released by the club, Barcelona said the objective of the legal action was not to cause harm to Pérez but to seek a retraction of statements it considers false and damaging.
The club maintained that the remarks were offensive to its image and reputation and insisted that Pérez withdraw the allegations.
Barcelona warned that if the matter is not resolved through the conciliation process, it will proceed with a formal criminal complaint.
“The objective of this lawsuit is for Mr. Pérez to retract certain statements he made knowing them to be false, statements that are slanderous and offensive to the image and reputation of the club,” the statement said.
The dispute centres on references made by Pérez to the Negreira case, an investigation involving payments made by Barcelona to a company linked to a former vice-president of Spain’s refereeing committee.
Barcelona has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing in connection with the matter.
Pérez has previously dismissed the possibility of legal action by Barcelona and maintained his criticism of the club.
“Barça would do well to sue me. If they think they should, let them do it,” he reportedly said.
The latest development adds a legal dimension to the long-standing rivalry between Spain’s two most successful football clubs.
Neither Pérez nor Real Madrid had issued a fresh response to Barcelona’s legal move as of the time of filing this report.
