La Liga

Barcelona and its former presidents Sandro Rosell and Josep Maria Bartomeu are facing corruption charges in Spain for making payments to the former vice president of the refereeing committee, per ESPN's Sam Marsden and Moises Llorens.

Rosell, Bartomeu and Barcelona are accused of "corruption in sport, corruption in business, false administration and the falsification of commercial documents" for paying former referee Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira's company, Dasnil 95 SL, nearly $7.5 million from 2001 to 2018, per ESPN.

Former Barca executives Oscar Grau and Albert Soler are also listed as defendants.

A statement from prosecutors said:

"Through presidents Rosell and Bartomeu, Barcelona reached and maintained a strictly confidential verbal agreement with the defendant Negreira, so that, in his capacity as vice president of the refereeing committee and in exchange for money, he would carry out actions aimed at favouring Barcelona in the decision making of the referees in the matches played by the club, and thus in the results of the competitions."

The payments made to Negreira's company were for "technical reports on refereeing," according to Barcelona. The club maintains that the services are standard at the highest level of soccer across the world.

Rosell served as Barcelona's president from 2010 to 2014 before being replaced by Bartomeu, who resigned in 2020. Joan Laporta has served as the Catalan club's president since 2021.

Laporta also served as Barca's president from 2003 to 2010 and could be called as a witness, per ESPN. The 60-year-old said in a statement earlier this week that the club has never paid off officials.

"Barca have never bought referees nor influence," he said. "That was never the intention and that has to be clear. The facts contradict those that are trying to tell a different story."

Negreira left his role as the vice president of Spain's refereeing committee in 2018. He was previously the only person under investigation for receiving nearly $1.5 million from Barcelona from 2016 to 2018.

Prosecutors opted to pursue charges against Rosell, Bartomeu, Grau and Soler after reviewing payments made from 2014 to 2018.

Barcelona will not face any sporting sanctions in Spain because three-plus years have passed, LaLiga chief Javier Tebas said. However, Tebas made it clear he will take a look at the case again once the legal process has concluded.

ESPN's notes UEFA "could yet decide to act depending on the outcome" and FIFA, the sport's governing body, could step in at some point.

Barcelona is one of the world's greatest soccer clubs in history and has found incredible success over the last two-plus decades. Since 2001, the club has won four UEFA Champions League titles, seven Copa del Rey titles and three FIFA Club World Cups, among various other accolades.

Much of Barca's success over the last two decades can be attributed to superstar Lionel Messi, who spent 17 seasons with the club from 2004-2021, before departing for Ligue 1 side Paris Saint-Germain.

The son of Barcelona legend Ronaldinho signed a contract with the club's under-19 team.

ESPN's Sam Marsden and Moises Llorens reported João Mendes de Assis Moreira's deal runs through the 2023-24 season: "Sources added the club will assess whether to offer an extended deal after his initial contract expires."

Mendes had been on trial with Barça.

The 18-year-old had been signed with the under-17 side for Brazilian club Cruzeiro. Marsden and Llorens described him as "a left-footed forward who can play across the front line."

In a February interview with Catalan radio station RAC1 (via Marca's Enrique Corbella), Ronaldinho indicated his son was trialing with Barcelona.

"With the arrival of my son at Barcelona, I will be more present than ever at the club," he said.

Thanks to his familial connections, Mendes' progress will likely be closely tracked by many supporters.

Ronaldinho spent five seasons at the Camp Nou, helping Barcelona win back-to-back La Liga titles in 2004-05 and 2005-06. Barça also achieved a domestic and European double in 2005-06, besting Arsenal 2-1 in the Champions League final.

In 2017, the 42-year-old returned to Barcelona in an official capacity after signing a deal to become a club ambassador.

During Sevilla's match against PSV Eindhoven on Thursday, a fan ran onto the pitch and punched goalkeeper Marko Dmitrović in the face before being wrestled to the ground.

According to ESPN, the incident happened late in the match and Dmitrović was able to continue playing, appearing unharmed.

Dmitrović was originally not in line to suit up for Thursday's match, but he was thrust into action after projected starting goalkeeper Yassine Bounou felt ill prior to kickoff.

Dmitrović was reportedly able to subdue the fan after he was hit until players from both teams surrounded them. The fan was escorted off the pitch as boos rained down from PSV Stadium.

After the incident, the 31-year-old keeper was understandably upset about what occurred.

"I never saw anything like it," Dmitrović said after the game. "I'm not going to say what I really wanted to do [to the pitch invader]. I'm glad I was aware of where he was coming from and was able to stop him, otherwise other things could have happened. He wanted to hit me, it's unfortunate that this kind of incident happened on a soccer pitch. UEFA should do something, this has to stop."

Sevilla lost Thursday's match 2-0, but managed to advance past PSV Eindhoven to the Round of 16 by winning 3-2 on aggregate after winning the previous leg 3-0.

Barcelona are set to sign 17-year-old forward João Mendes, the son of club legend Ronaldinho:

Mendes had played for Cruzeiro in Brazil before terminating his contract. He underwent a trial with Barcelona's U19 team in January, per Sam Marsden and Moises Llorens of ESPN.

The left-footed player has mostly been used as a center forward in his career, although he has also played as an attacking midfielder, per Transfermarkt.

Mendes will try to follow in the footsteps of his father, who spent five years with Barcelona from 2003 to 2008.

Ronaldinho led the club to two La Liga titles and one Champions League title during that time, winning the 2005 Ballon d'Or. The Brazilian scored 70 goals with 38 assists in 145 league matches for Barcelona.

He also competed for Paris Saint-Germain and AC Milan during his impressive club career in Europe and helped lead Brazil to a World Cup title in 2002.

On Tuesday, Ronaldinho was given Barcelona's Legend Trophy by president John Laporta:

The 42-year-old has remained involved with the club as an ambassador since 2017.

Officials from La Liga were sharply critical of the Premier League after English clubs spent a combined £815 million ($1 billion) during the January transfer window.

La Liga president Javier Tebas shared a video from Javier Gomez, the league's corporate general director, who contrasted La Liga's finances with that of the Premier League (via ESPN.com).

He said shareholders of La Liga clubs can spend money "within certain limits" and that those barriers aren't in place for English clubs.

The data is as follows: With data compared up to June 30, 2021, and across the five previous seasons, the PL and Championship — top two tiers of English football — lost €3bn. In that same time, the Spanish league lost — we all suffered in the pandemic — €250m. But what happened? During that same period, shareholders across the PL and Champ put in €3.5bn. Across that same period, shareholders in Spain put in €450m.

Gomez went on to add Premier League owners are "doping" their clubs.

"They are injecting money not generated by the club for it to spend, which puts the viability of the club at risk if the shareholder leaves," he said. "In our opinion, that is cheating, because it drags down the rest of the leagues."

UEFA's Financial Fair Play rules were intended to rein in the extent to which European clubs could flex their muscle in the transfer market. Chelsea spending £323 million in the January window alone is an example of how those guidelines can be exploited.

While some might see Gomez's comments as sour grapes, others will contend it isn't healthy for the sport as a whole when one league can have such a significant financial edge over the competition.

The ill-fated Super League failed to get off the ground amid widespread unpopularity. But the present situation could renew calls for an alternative to the Champions League that allows clubs outside England to catch up.

An effigy of Real Madrid star Vinicius Jr. was hung off a bridge outside the club's training facility Thursday, ahead of a match against rival Atlético Madrid:

The banner attached to the bridge translates to "Madrid hates Real," via BBC Sport. Per ESPN's Alex Kirkland and Rodrigo Faez, the slogan is "associated with a group of Atlético ultras."

The clubs are set to face each other on Thursday in the Copa del Rey quarterfinals.

Vinicius, the 22-year-old Brazil international in his fifth year with Real Madrid, has often been the target of racial abuse in road matches, as detailed by Colin Millar of the Mirror.

La Liga said in a statement it "strongly condemns acts of hatred and intimidation against Vinicius Jr," while Atlético Madrid also called the act "repugnant."

"The rivalry between the two clubs is the greatest, but so is respect," the club said. "No individual, whatever their intentions or colours, can tarnish the coexistence between different supporters. It is everyone's responsibility to avoid this."

The Real Madrid star also released a statement, per Millar:

"Vinicius is aware of the situation but is focused on tonight's game. He will discuss the issue tomorrow with his club and legal staff, but his position remains the same as before: he expects punishment from the authorities, not official statements."

Authorities opened an investigation after Atlético fans sang racist songs targeting Vinicius during their La Liga battle in September. Prosecutors closed the case after three months, saying it was impossible to determine who was responsible, per BBC Sport.

The rivals are also scheduled to face off in La Liga play on Feb. 26.

Real Madrid won the first La Liga meeting against Barcelona this season. The Catalans answered with a triumph in the Supercopa final.

Led by goals from Gavi, Robert Lewandowski and Pedri, Barcelona beat hated rivals Real Madrid 3-1 on Sunday to claim the title.

Karim Benzema's goal in the second-half stoppage time provided little consolation for Los Blancos.

There is never any love lost between these two Spanish rivals, and Real Madrid supporters were left to doom-scroll Twitter after the match and face the trolling:

The day really belonged to Gavi, who added two assists to go along with his goal. The 18-year-old is one of the more astonishing young talents in Spain, and he was sublime on Sunday.

"I don't have anything to say about Gavi anymore," Sergio Busquets said after the match. "You already know how good he is. How he competes, his technique... everything. He is a top player, and he will only get better."

Real Madrid's next chance to strike back will come on Sunday, March 19, when the two clubs clash again in La Liga action. That likely will be an enormous match for Spain's title race, with Barcelona currently holding a three-point lead over Real Madrid atop La Liga's table.

Given that the two clubs have won all but four La Liga titles in the 21st century, it's hardly a surprise that they find themselves neck-and-neck yet again. Or that yet another Supercopa came down to the two footballing giants.

On Sunday, Barcelona won the clash of titans, led by the dynamic Gavi. The anticipation for the next showdown is already building.

Real Madrid star Vinicius Junior criticized La Liga on Saturday for its inaction toward addressing racist behavior.

"Racists continue to go to stadiums and watch the biggest club in the world up close and La Liga continues to do nothing..." he wrote on Twitter (h/t The Athletic's Jacob Whitehead).

"I will continue with my head held high and celebrating my victories and those of Madrid. In the end it's MY fault."

His comments came after he was the target of racist abuse during a 2-0 win over Real Valladolid on Friday.

La Liga issued a statement to Whitehead defending its handing of racism allegations, saying, "Hate speech has no place in LaLiga."

"We are investigating last night's match and will work with the clubs and appropriate authorities to identify and prosecute anyone guilty of hate speech," the league stated.

"As for yesterday's events, LaLiga is still investigating but has already identified racist insults from some individuals (not groups) in videos uploaded to social media, which will be the subject of an official complaint as in previous cases."

Racist abuse by fans isn't a problem isolated to Spain, but it has remained a persistent issue for years. This isn't the first time Vinicius has been victimized, either. Prior to Madrid's 2-1 win over rival Atlético Madrid in September, Atlético supporters chanted, "Vinicius is a monkey" as they entered Cívitas Metropolitano.

La Liga's approach to addressing allegations of racist abuse also came into sharp focus in April 2021, when Valencia defender Mouctar Diakhaby said he had been racially abused by Cádiz defender Juan Cala. Diakhaby's teammates walked off the pitch in solidarity, and he didn't return to the match when it restarted.

La Liga said days later it didn't find evidence that Cala used a racist slur toward Diakhaby.

In a statement, Valencia said, "The fact that no evidence has been found does not mean that it didn't happen."

"Our aim is to see a change, to see an appropriate response to such a grave incident, to see a movement to change the regulations and attitudes when facing these types of problems that may arise," the club stated. "It was an unprecedented episode in football, but we are convinced that it will serve to promote a real change in the regulations."

The Athletic's Dermot Corrigan and Adam Crafton laid out how the incident was emblematic of structural issues within La Liga and Spain.

Real Madrid have reportedly agreed to a €60 million ($64 million) deal to acquire 16-year-old phenom Endrick from Brazilian side Palmeiras, per Thomas Hindle of Goal.com.

According to reporter Fabrizio Romano, Endrick will join Real Madrid in June 2024 when he turns 18 years old. The deal will run through at least 2027, with three years of options through 2030.

Palmeiras president Leila Pereira said it's the "biggest sale in Brazilian football history," per Romano.

Endrick is the youngest player to appear in a match for Palmeiras and the youngest to score a goal for the club. He had three goals and an assist in seven matches in Série A as the squad won the league title.

The forward has also impressed for the Brazil under-17 side in his brief career.

There was widespread interest among top European clubs, with Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain reportedly making significant pitches to the young player, per David Ornstein of The Athletic.

Ornstein noted Real Madrid's chief scout Juni Calafat, who is from Brazil, helped put the La Liga club over the top for Endrick's signature.

Los Blancos have also proved they can develop young Brazilian forwards, with Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo currently playing significant roles after transferring from Série A.

Endrick could be next in line to help a team that won La Liga and Champions League trophies last year. Real Madrid entered the World Cup break in second place in La Liga behind Barcelona.

Real Madrid and France forward Karim Benzema has been ruled out for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar because of a thigh injury, per Le Parisien.

The news comes after Benzema was ruled out for France's first group stage match against Australia on Tuesday. Le Parisien previously reported there was doubt about his participation for the remainder of the competition.

Losing Benzema is a tough blow for the French team, which is already without Paul Pogba, N'Golo Kanté, Boubacar Kamara, Presnel Kimpembe and Christopher Nkunku because of injuries. Raphaël Varane's status is also in question because of injury.

However, the team still boasts a talented roster that includes Kylian Mbappé, Olivier Giroud, Kingsley Coman, Ousmane Dembélé, Aurélien Tchouaméni and Eduardo Camavinga, among others, that will surely see it out of the group stage.

Benzema had been dealing with knee and hamstring injuries through the first half of the 2022-23 club season with Real Madrid and hasn't played since a Nov. 2 group stage win over Celtic in the UEFA Champions League.

The 34-year-old had been participating in a personalized training program developed by the French national team in the leadup to the World Cup, doing drills separately from his Les Bleus teammates since they arrived in Qatar on Nov. 16.

Benzema, the 2022 Ballon d'Or winner, was not a member of the 2018 French team that won the World Cup in Russia and was hoping to help lead Les Blues to another world title this year.

Unfortunately, Benzema will now have to wait until the 2026 World Cup in North America to get his shot at winning a World Cup with France, though at that point he'll be 38. In 97 total appearances for the country, he has tallied 37 goals.

France opens the 2022 World Cup on Tuesday at Al Janoub Stadium against Australia. Didier Deschamps has until Monday to call up a replacement for Benzema.

France would become the first nation to win back-to-back titles since Brazil in 1958 and 1962 if they win this year's World Cup in Qatar.