The resignation of six directors is the latest instalment in a soap opera in which boardroom squabbles have become the norm
The resignation letter six Barcelona directors handed to a notary on Thursday night, deepening the club’s crisis, included a demand that the external investigation into what has become known as “Barçagate” be completed, with anyone responsible punished and any money repaid. The allegations, first reported by Cadena SER Radio, are that payments totalling €900,000 were made to the company I3 Venturesto run social media accounts and websites that attacked opposition figures, players past and present, and defended the reputation of the president Josep Maria Bartomeu.
Barcelona, Bartomeu and I3 Ventures have strongly denied wrongdoing, with the president describing the allegations as “completely false”, but either way the episode has made things worse. If it did happen, it didn’t work. Sometimes there are too many fires to be put out and no chance of the men in the middle not getting burnt. However zealously a president is protected – and parts of the media are ready to champion Bartomeu – when so many bad things happen so fast, they aren’t going to emerge unscathed. And, boy, has a lot happened at Barcelona. Even not playing couldn’t stop that, which may even make sense: for so long, the team have propped up the club; without it, maybe things were bound to fall down.
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