Barcelona have been charged with sporting corruption, following the case of Barcelona and alleged corruption case with ex referee chief Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira.

Barcelona were found to have made payments to the former vice-president of Spain’s refereeing committee, Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira.

Spanish prosecutors confirmed on Friday that Barcelona, as well as former club presidents Sandro Rosell and Josep Maria Bartomeu, have been charged with sporting corruption.

Real Madrid have expressed their ‘concern’ regarding the corruption allegations levelled at Barcelona.

The club called for a board of directors meeting to deliberate the allegations, and have now released a statement confirming that if/when a trial occurs, the club will appear as one of the ‘affected parties’.

The statement read: “In their meeting held today, the Real Madrid C. F. Board of Directors have inspected the serious accusations brought by the Barcelona Prosecution Service against F. C. Barcelona, two of its former presidents, Josep María Bartomeu and Sandro Rosell, and executives Albert Soler and Óscar Grau, on the basis of alleged offenses of corruption in sports, among others, all related to the relationship the club maintained with the former Vice-President of the Technical Referees’ Committee (CTA), José María Enríquez Negreira.

“Real Madrid wishes to express its utmost concern regarding the gravity of the facts and reiterates its confidence in the legal system.

“The club has agreed that, in defence of its legitimate rights, it will appear at the trial when the judge opens it up to the affected parties.”