Barcelona-La Liga 'War' Escalates to CAS; Sports Arbitration Court Investigates Tebas

The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has launched an investigation into Javier Tebas, president of La Liga, following allegations that he disclosed confidential financial information related to FC Barcelona.

This action stems from the alleged disclosure of confidential information concerning FC Barcelona, specifically in the context of the VIP box sales case. This procedure could lead to severe consequences for Tebas, ranging from a public warning or a suspension from his duties for two months to a year, up to his dismissal from office.

The complaint filed by Miguel Ángel Galán, president of the Association for Transparency and Democracy in Sport, continues through the sports justice system. Informed sources reported that CAS has initiated a disciplinary investigation to determine potential responsibility arising from the public disclosure of information and data sent by FC Barcelona to La Liga, in compliance with club budgeting standards, via a statement published on April 2, 2025, on La Liga's website.

Rule Five of the aforementioned regulation prohibits the disclosure of such information, stating: “Information, data, and documents provided by clubs/sports companies to La Liga, in compliance with these rules, are confidential and subject to data protection regulations, without prejudice to obligations arising from information requests by judicial and administrative bodies.”

The Superior Sports Council (CSD) examined Galán's complaint for several months and deemed the disclosure of Barcelona's economic data in a statement (later withdrawn from the website) to be a very serious violation. Consequently, the CSD referred the complaint to the Administrative Court in October. If CAS, which currently sees sufficient “indications” to open the investigation, finds that Tebas violated the rule, he will face three potential scenarios: a public warning (which he already received months ago due to a complaint from Real Madrid), a temporary suspension (from two months to a year), or dismissal from his position.

La Liga and Barcelona had previously exchanged statements amidst the crisis surrounding the registration of Dani Olmo. On April 2, 2025, the league issued a statement asserting that the Catalan club had not complied with Financial Fair Play rules, confirming that Barcelona had not registered €100 million in its accounts on time, an income derived from 475 VIP box seats at Camp Nou.

Five days later, Barcelona issued a statement accusing Tebas of violating his duty of confidentiality, noting that the club had not granted permission for the publication of that data. This prompted La Liga to delete the statement from its website and all other official channels.

Based on this exchange of statements and Javier Tebas' subsequent remarks via social media and the press, Galán filed his complaint. It included accusations of violating confidentiality, disclosing specific details of Barcelona's institutional operations (the sale of VIP boxes), details of auditor changes, information about the Catalan club's financial situation, and the revelation of internal reports and correspondence from the Superior Sports Council.