Barca president holds talk with UEFA over financial irregularities

Barcelona president Joan Laporta held private talks with UEFA’s Aleksander Ceferin to ease the club’s likely punishment over financial irregularities.

According to Marca, Laporta travelled to Munich not only to watch Spain’s Nations League final but also to meet UEFA president Ceferin behind closed doors. The key topic was Barcelona’s looming punishment for breaching financial regulations.

Specifically, UEFA has flagged how the club recorded revenue from “levers” financial manoeuvres involving the sale of future TV rights and other assets, which UEFA does not accept as ordinary income.

While La Liga has validated these methods, UEFA does not, considering them “extraordinary” and thus in violation of financial sustainability rules.

Laporta used the meeting to explain these differences directly to Ceferin, hoping for a lighter outcome.

The Catalan club has already been fined €500,000 by UEFA in the past, but now face harsher sanctions as repeat offenders. The club’s controversial strategy of pulling “levers” helped fund high-profile signings like Robert Lewandowski and Jules Kounde despite being under financial pressure.

UEFA, however, insists these tactics distort fair competition. UEFA’s Financial Sustainability Regulations replaced the old Financial Fair Play rules, aiming for stricter oversight and transparency.

Clubs must balance spending with long-term income and Barca’s levers are seen as short-term fixes that bend those principles.