Real Madrid hand UEFA 50,000-page dossier on Barcelona referee payments

Real Madrid have sent UEFA a vast file of evidence about payments Barcelona allegedly made to Spain's former refereeing chief.

Madrid described the material as being of "extraordinary gravity", according to BBC. UEFA called the file "substantial". Its ethics and disciplinary inspectors will now assess it.

The case centres on Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira. He was vice-president of Spain's referees committee, the body that oversees officials. The allegation is that Barcelona paid him 8.4 million euros (£7.2m) between 2001 and 2018.

Barcelona deny wrongdoing. The club says the money was for scouting and technical reports on officials, supplied by Negreira and his Dasnil 95 company.

The dossier is reported to run to more than 50,000 pages. That scale is unusual. It reflects almost two decades of payments under scrutiny.

UEFA said the material will be considered as part of its ongoing review. Barcelona said UEFA had "not opened any new proceedings" against the club. Proceedings opened in 2023 remain open.

That history matters. In June 2023, UEFA's investigators decided Barcelona would not face punishment over the payments. No new sanction has been announced.

In Spain, a separate court investigation that began in 2023 is still ongoing. A court dismissed bribery charges against Barcelona in 2024, according to Yahoo Sports. Other aspects of the case continue.

Madrid president Florentino Pérez had signalled this step in May. In a statement on the club's website, he said Madrid was preparing an important dossier to present, as reported by Real Madrid. He said the payments at issue lasted two decades and involved the same referees.

Madrid have been involved in the legal fallout since 2023. That March, the club said it would join the complaint filed by Spanish prosecutors against Barcelona, according to ESPN. UEFA opened its own investigation the same month.

For fans, this means two tracks to watch. UEFA must decide whether the new file changes its position. The Spanish court must finish its work. Neither body has found Barcelona liable over sporting integrity.