Madrid, discreet
The meeting of the football authorities turned out to be more about optics than fireworks. After an extraordinary gathering by LaLiga, the Barça president faced questions about the Negreira case. Yet the mood quickly shifted from emphasis on that point to a visible sense of disappointment among many in the room. The event, which had been anticipated by some seats, did not explode as some had feared. When Laporta finally spoke, his remarks were framed as a single summary rather than a full-on exposé, a nuance he later clarified in a Monday press conference led by Xavier Tebas.
What followed was not the dramatic confrontation some expected. There were complaints and mild anger directed at the Barça president for bringing the issue forward, and for insinuating that there were other clubs who paid the former vice-president of referees. Laporta offered an apology for any insinuation, but the room remained tense. More than one club president attempted to interject and push back, yet Tebas decided that ten or twelve aftershocks would suffice, even though those explanations did not fully convince everyone present. Leaders from several clubs, including Miguel Angel Gil Marin, the CEO of Athletic, kept a cautious distance, while Jose Angel Sanchez, the CEO of Real Madrid, stayed outwardly restrained. Real Madrid, in particular, held a position of measured restraint, signaling a preference to avoid escalating tensions and letting LaLiga handle the public narrative.
Madrid, discreet
The white club made its stance clear: it would not attend a meeting organized by its fiercest rival. Even if that stance softened marginally in the end, Madrid chose to remain in the background, preserving its leadership posture within the institution. The message leaned on LaLiga’s actions and the judicial framework backing them, a tone that Madrid believed supported the league in its pursuit of clarity and accountability.
Laporta left the league headquarters with a calm smile, appearing to stand by a cautious, institutionally grounded narrative rather than with any dramatic revelation. His demeanor suggested that the league already controlled the distribution of the imagery that mattered, including the cordial encounter between Tebas and Laporta that was captured and shared widely.
A silent, almost playful video exchange between the two leaders hinted at a more personal dynamic behind the public feud. Tebas later characterized the moment as inconsequential to the broader dispute, a reminder that behind closed doors there exists a different, quieter conversation. The episode underscored Tebas’s assertion that the resignation of Laporta would not be revoked and that, in his words, the matter itself had moved beyond a simple clash over governance or ethics.
Observers noted that the heat of public quarrels often masks a deeper, ongoing negotiation. A veteran member of the league council remarked that everyone speaks with a microphone nearby, but there is often a great deal of intimacy in private discussions. The wider Spanish football community has a stake in not allowing the Barça case to derail the sport. Regardless of judicial rulings, the consensus is to avoid fueling a public fire that could tarnish the game’s reputation and affect the sport’s standing across the country. In this view, a pause or truce seems more likely than a radical escalation, at least for now.