A ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union has given Barcelona another financial damper on Thursday. The Catalans appear to have enjoyed an illegal tax advantage, or state aid, between 1990 and 2016. For that reason, Barcelona is facing a significant additional tax from the Spanish tax authorities, precisely while the club is already in quite difficult financial times.
The ruling also applies to Real Madrid, Athletic Club and Osasuna. The four clubs were classified as non-profit organizations, yielding a significant tax benefit. Instead of 30 percent, Barcelona, Real Madrid, Athletic Club and Osasuna paid 25 percent tax. This came to light in 2016, forcing the clubs to repay the unlawfully obtained state aid over 26 years.
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Real Madrid, Athletic Club and Osasuna have already accepted this, but Barcelona has tried to avoid the additional tax until now. The Catalans’ appeal was initially successful, but it has now been rejected by the Court of Justice of the European Union. It means that Barcelona must also definitively repay the amount. It is unclear how high this amount is, but a lower court of the European Union previously ruled that the tax benefits amounted to less than five million euros.
Nevertheless, the judgment of the Court of Justice of the European Union will be a major setback for Barcelona. The Catalans are facing a huge debt burden, which is only growing due to the financial consequences of the corona crisis. Barcelona was also shocked on Monday by the arrest of former president Josep María Bartomeu, general manager Òscar Grau, chief legal affairs Romà Gómez Ponti and former adviser Jaume Masferrer. Bartomeu is accused of secretly paying money to PR agency I3 Ventures to do online work for the club.
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