In a dramatic and sensational development, FC Barcelona have officially announced that they have taken the first steps towards filing a lawsuit against Real Madrid president, Florentino Perez.
This legal action comes as a direct response to derogatory comments made by the Real Madrid chief against Barça. Perez claimed that the Catalan club had “stolen” trophies from the Spanish capital club with the assistance of referees, directly pointing fingers at the controversial Negreira case.
Barça’s legal department had previously confirmed that they were studying the appropriate course of action against Perez, and they have now solidified their stance by initiating formal legal proceedings.
FC Barcelona’s Official Statement
The official club statement issued by FC Barcelona read as follows:
“FC Barcelona reports that today it has filed the required conciliation request prior to filing a lawsuit for the crime of slander under Article 205 of the Penal Code against the President of Real Madrid, Mr. Florentino Perez, as a result of the statements made by him at the press conference on May 12 and in an interview with a media outlet the following day.”
“The objective of this lawsuit is for Mr. Perez to retract certain statements he made knowing them to be false—statements that are slanderous and offensive to the image and reputation of the Club.”
“Should this demand not be properly addressed, FC Barcelona will proceed to file the corresponding criminal complaint.”
Real Madrid Chief Doubled Down on Legal Threat
For his part, Florentino Perez has historically downplayed Barcelona’s threats of legal intervention. Instead of stepping back, he previously doubled down on his public criticism of the Blaugrana regarding the Negreira case.
Perez had earlier stated: “Barça would do well to sue me. If they think they should do it, let them do it.”
Now that Barcelona has transformed its verbal warnings into official legal action, all eyes are on the Real Madrid president to see whether he will issue a retraction or allow this bitter rivalry to play out inside a courtroom.
