By Andrew Warshaw
April 4 – Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu (pictured) says the transfer ban imposed by FIFA for signing under-age players is “unjust” and is standing firmly behind the Catalan giant’s system of nurturing some of the world’s biggest stars.
On Wednesday FIFA imposed a 14-month transfer ban on Barca, covering two windows, relating to players under the age of 18. Barca were deemed to have breached rules relating to the “international transfers of non-Spanish minors” and were given 90 days to “regularise the situation of all minor (under 18) players”.
They said they would immediately appeal, arguing that their famed academy, ‘La Masia’, has been held up as a model of good practice. At a news conference Bartomeu went further.
“The La Masia system is something not to be touched,” he said. ” It won’t be changed and we will fight this unjust attack on a model which has been a huge success over the last three decades.”
Under FIFA laws, clubs are not allowed to sign international players under the age of 18 unless the player is moving within the European Union and is aged between 16 and 18; the players’ parents are moving to a new country for non-footballing reasons; or club and player both live within 50 kilometers of a shared national border.
Following an investigation, FIFA’s Disciplinary Committee concluded that Barcelona had broken these rules in the case of 10 young players. As a result, the club was issued with a transfer ban at both national and international level for two complete and consecutive transfer periods and handed a fine of CHF 450,000 ($508,000).
The shattering move comes towards the end of a difficult season off the pitch for Barca following allegations of tax evasion around the signing of Neymar that led to the resignation of controversial club president Sandro Rosell in January.
Bartomeu, his replacement, is furious at the latest sanction. “FIFA is punishing a method that it tried, tested and proven over the last 35 years,” he countered . “FIFA know that we do things correctly – we had Lionel Messi, Andres Iniesta and Xavi as first, second and third in the Ballon d’Or. We want all of our fans and members to show their indignation at this sanction.”
Barcelona had openly supplied FIFA with information on approximately 50 players under the age of 18 who had registered and played for the club between 2009 and 2013, Bartomeu said, suggesting there may have been a deliberate conspiracy.
FIFA’s investigation, he said, was prompted by an “anonymous complaint” about an “unnamed player”.
But Barca’s claims seem somewhat disingenuous following a FIFA investigation that took over a year to complete following the first revelations of Barca’s youth policies by this website in February 2013. There is no doubt that the club broke the registration rules and that the federation was, at best, negligent in its enforcement of those rules.
However, the scale of the punishment could reflect the findings of the investigation that have not been divulged by FIFA and the importance it attaches to the protection of minors.
In its statement FIFA said: “The Disciplinary Committee emphasised that the protection of minors in the context of international transfers is an important social and legal issue that concerns all stakeholders in football. Above all, the committee highlighted that while international transfers might, in specific cases, be favourable to a young player’s sporting career, they are very likely to be contrary to the best interests of the player as a minor. On the basis of this analysis, the committee concluded that ‘the interest in protecting the appropriate and healthy development of a minor as a whole must prevail over purely sporting interests’.”
Barca is clearly furious and hunting its own organisation to find the whistle-blower. It is still refusing to accept that it has broken any rules.
“For a while now someone wants to damage Barcelona,” Bartomeu said. “We are investigating where the anonymous complaint came from. Barça have done nothing wrong, we just looked for talent. I cannot say the suspicions point to one club or another.”
Bartomeu has not discussed the punishment with FIFA boss Sepp Blatter but insists FIFA Secretary General Jerome Valcke “considers the measure excessive.”
“Barça did not break the rules. When they told (us) the kids could not play, they stopped playing,” he added. “We ask FIFA to look from case to case, the circumstances of each kid, so that there can be exceptions to the rules. As a club, we accept FIFA regulations because we are a FIFA member.”
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