5 infamous Barcelona scandals of the 21st century
The remark 'Barcelona is no longer a role model for us' made by Bayern Munich president Uli Hoeness earlier this week carries a lot of weight. For a club that has set the standard for others on a sporting and noble basis over several decades, what could have gone wrong with Blaugrana?
The last few years have seen the Catalan giants struggle to live up to their 'Mes que un club' slogan. From one mess to another, Barcelona appear to have drifted from the core values that made it a shining light in European football.
Shortly after the start of the 21st century, the club started making headlines for the wrong reasons as it involved itself in many ugly and scandalous acts. That, in turn, has done a lot of harm to its reputation. It wouldn't be too much to say Barcelona FC is now a mere shadow of what it used to be.
To throw more weight behind this claim, we highlight 5 infamous Barcelona scandals of the 21st century. They are as follows:
#5 The controversial transfer of Neymar from Santos
Barcelona announced the signing of Neymar from Santos in the summer of 2013. Blaugrana claimed they paid €57 million to lure the Brazilian to Camp Nou. Given the attacker's popularity and the number of suitors at the time, the transfer was considered a huge bargain across Europe
However, shortly after the transfer, some ugly details started emerging. It was discovered that Barcelona misrepresented the actual costs incurred while signing Neymar from Santos. Jordi Cases, a club member at the time, accused then-president Sandro Rosell of misappropriating funds amounting to €40m related to Neymar’s deal.
The trio of Neymar, Rosell and JM Bartomeu will be tried in a court in Barcelona and not at the National Court. They are standing trial for accusations based on corruption and fraud related to Neymar's transfer from Santos to Barca in 2013.
[SPORT] https://t.co/ldhUpGJryV
It soon became a legal case, with investigations revealing the actual transfer fee to be in the region of €83.3 million. The controversy stained Barcelona's reputation seriously and it was only the beginning of many other legal issues involving the Catalan giants and Neymar.
#4 The Barcagate scandal
In February 2020, former Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu was accused of hiring a PR company, I3 Ventures, to tarnish the image of some club legends. Lionel Messi, Gerard Pique and Xavi Hernandez were all included.
BREAKING: Ex-Barcelona president Josep Bartomeu has been arrested today, reports @el_pais 🚨
The arrest is reportedly in relation to the "Barcagate" scandal in which the club allegedly hired a social media company to publicly discredit players and staff https://t.co/VU4UzTtM8y
Although Bartomeu's administration initially denied the allegations, it was later confirmed the club had indeed paid I3 ventures to do some social media work. The work involved painting a good image of the president while tarnishing the image of several players. Things got to an escalating level this year, leading to the arrest of Bartomeu and his aides.