Barcelona, under the leadership of Joan Laporta, has been fined €500,000 for misrepresenting income from the sale of 10% of their television rights.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has dismissed Barcelona’s appeal against this penalty, which was originally imposed by UEFA’s Club Financial Control Body (CFCB) for violating Financial Fair Play rules in 2022.
The fine came about because Barcelona incorrectly reported profits from selling intangible assets (unrelated to player transfers) as relevant income. Specifically, they classified the sale of 10% of LaLiga’s TV rights to Sixth Street, valued at €267 million over 25 years, as regular operating income. This misclassification inflated the club’s financial reports, showing a more favorable break-even result for 2022.
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The CFCB had already determined in 2023 that Barcelona’s financial assessments for 2019-2022 didn’t meet UEFA’s Fair Play standards. This ruling was based on the older Financial Fair Play regulations, from the 2018 edition.
Despite appealing the decision to the CAS, the court has now upheld the original fine and rejected Barcelona’s arguments. CAS also issued a stern reminder to the club, stating that Barcelona’s financial struggles don’t excuse breaking the rules. They pointed out that better financial management might have prevented the club from needing to sell or misclassify the income from the sale.
Additionally, CAS warned that this misstep will impact Barcelona’s financial reports not just for 2022, but also for the next two seasons, since UEFA’s monitoring period spans three consecutive reporting years. It’s another legal blow for the club as they deal with their ongoing financial challenges.