Neymar Case at Barcelona Court: 2011-2013 Transfers and Allegations

The Barcelona Court will hear the Neymar case from October 17 to October 31, with the Brazilian football star currently on the Paris Saint-Germain roster. Neymar will not play during the hearings; instead, he will be absent to support his family and to observe proceedings involving former FC Barcelona presidents Josep Maria Bartomeu and Sandro Rosell. The focus is on alleged irregularities in signings dating back to 2013. The coverage comes from El País and legal sources cited by Efe, confirming that the hearing will run across seven sessions beginning October 17. The prosecution contends that the defendants could face prison time on two charges of corruption and fraud tied to simulated contracts in negotiations that facilitated Neymar’s move to Barcelona in 2011 to 2013. The case originated after a complaint from the investment fund DIS ESPORTES E ORGANIZAÇÃO DE EVENTOS LTDA, which holds a 40 percent stake in some of Neymar’s federative rights and claims to have been cheated out of funds owed when Rosell was president and Bartomeu was vice president. The dispute also involves the Associação Brasileira das Federações de Atletas Profissionais, which argues that its rights, including a portion of Neymar’s transfer rights, were violated by the defendants. In initial decisions, the prosecutor’s office requested two years in prison and a ten million euro fine for Neymar, who is now a PSG player, and a potential five-year sentence for Rosell. The plea also seeks two years in prison for Neymar’s father and one year for his son, along with a 1.4 million euro fine for the family company N&N and related parties, all tied to alleged business corruption offenses. Bartomeu, who served as vice president of the Catalan club at the time, faces a separate indictment from the DIS, which seeks a five-year term. The case is titled Neymar 2 in the Barcelona Court system. A previous matter, Neymar 1, led to a settlement with the court in which Barça paid 5.5 million euros and was convicted of two tax offenses, with Rosell and Bartomeu absolved of liability. The ongoing proceedings revisit the complex web of rights, transfers, and financial arrangements surrounding one of modern football’s most prominent players and the club associated with his high-profile move.