FC Barcelona: Joan Laporta takes aim at Real Madrid

Joan Laporta criticised Real Madrid in Copenhagen and confirmed the complete breakdown between the two clubs

Europe Today at 06:15

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FC Barcelona: Joan Laporta takes aim at Real Madrid

Joan Laporta confirmed the complete breakdown between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid amid tensions linked to the Negreira affair.

Tensions continue to simmer between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid. In Copenhagen for the European Football Clubs (EFC) General Assembly, Joan Laporta once again criticised the Madrid rival over the Negreira affair. The Blaugrana president believes in particular that Real Madrid’s public statements are deliberately fuelling the controversy surrounding the Catalan club.

Laporta accuses Real Madrid of prolonging the Negreira affair

“What we cannot accept is that the truth is disregarded and that every time they speak publicly, they attack Barça,” Laporta said, in comments reported by Marca. The Catalan president also criticised Real Madrid’s decision to join the proceedings in the case.

“They became involved in the Negreira affair, in our view solely to prolong the case and justify the actions of their television channel and a narrative they had predetermined.”

The tensions are not new. In June, Real Madrid asked UEFA to reopen its investigation into the Negreira affair, marking a new stage in an institutional conflict that has become increasingly confrontational between the two Spanish giants.

“There is no relationship”

Laporta was then very clear about the current state of relations between the two institutions.

“With Madrid, you know that relations are broken. That is where the confrontation lies, and there is no relationship,” he said.

The Barça president is also calling for certain statements targeting his club to be corrected.

The contrast with Atlético de Madrid is striking. After tensions emerged during the summer, Laporta explained that he had spoken with Miguel Ángel Gil Marín in Copenhagen and said that the disagreements had been resolved.

A strong start to the season for Barça

On the pitch, the two clubs are currently following different trajectories in La Liga. After seven matchdays, FC Barcelona sit top with 21 points from 21. The Catalans have won all seven of their league matches, scored 31 goals and conceded only seven. They also made a successful start to their Champions League campaign by beating Feyenoord 5-1.

Real Madrid, meanwhile, sit fourth with 15 points, having recorded five wins and two defeats. Los Merengues notably lost to Betis (1-0), before suffering defeat in the derby against Atlético de Madrid (2-1). They nevertheless got their European campaign off to a good start with a 2-1 victory over Inter Milan. Beyond the institutional conflict, the rivalry therefore remains very much alive on the pitch at the start of the 2026-2027 season.