December 15 – Barcelona have disclosed that proceedings brought against the club regarding the signing of Neymar from Santos in 2013 have now been closed.
In June, Barcelona paid a fine of €5.5 million to settle a case brought by Spain’s tax authorities acknowledging it made “an error in the fiscal planning of the player’s transfer” but expressed their “surprise and total disagreement” at the decision to take the case to trial
Board members have now voted 14-2 in favour of the pact to absolve current president Josep Maria Bartomeu and ex-president Sandro Rosell of the alleged misappropriation of funds when pushing the transfer through.
Club member Jordi Cases had originally brought the legal action against the club claiming that Rosell had hidden the real cost of Neymar. The lawsuit subsequently led to the resignation of Rosell in 2014, with vice president Bartomeu replacing him.
Neymar is still facing a possible jail term and a huge fine due to separate ongoing case surrounding alleged irregularities over his transfer from Santos.
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