Cologne – At the Spanish football champions FC Barcelona, the leadership crisis is increasingly turning into a mud fight. National goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen’s club announced on Easter Monday after a board meeting against Vice President Emili Rousaud who resigned Thursday evening on “serious and unfounded charges […] to proceed legally in a series of media interviews.
The board around President Josep Bartomeu made a statement “categorically denied any act that could be described as corruption and has agreed to initiate the corresponding prosecution. FC Barcelona cannot tolerate allegations that seriously damage the image of the institution”, It continued: “The criminal measure serves to defend the honor of the association and its employees.”
Millions of dollars for targeted defamation?
Rosaud and five other members of the 19-member club directorate had turned their backs on the club after internal disagreements, called for early elections in an open letter on Good Friday and criticized serious shortcomings in the processing of “Barcagate”.
The increasingly controversial Bartomeu, who has to resign after two terms as club boss in 2021, is said to have paid I3 Ventura a million dollars for targeted defamation in order to strengthen its position and that of the entire club leadership in public.
The first details came to light in February, Bartomeu terminated the contract with I3 Ventura and emphasized that the company only monitored social media posts. Independent auditors started an internal investigation that is ongoing.
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