The Brazilian’s transfer has tarnished a club that has long prided itself on its spotless reputation in Catalonia and around the world

Barcelona football club, the pride of Catalonia, has recently exhibited some of the finest teamplay the world’s number one sport has ever seen. But its glittering global reputation is also because of how it conducts itself. Més que un clube, goes the phrase – “More than a club”.

As befits the ideal of Catalonian independence, Barcelona shirts do not bear the name of commercial sponsors. Instead, the club pays the United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef) £1.25m a year to carry the name of the charity. Barca is good off the field as well as on it. Or that’s what the world thought.

So the club’s admission on Saturday that it had been, at best, disingenuous over the circumstances of the signing of Brazilian ace Neymar has tarnished Barcelona’s image and dismayed its legions of fans. For president Sandro Rosell, the revelation has been a public humiliation.

Signing Neymar, who is almost certain to be a star of this summer’s World Cup in Brazil, should have been the greatest triumph of Rosell’s presidency. Instead, it has been his downfall. Rosell resigned last week, after a judge admitted a lawsuit against him following a report from the public prosecutor that asked the courts to investigate a possible case of “simulated contracts”.

He departed insisting that Barcelona had done nothing illegal. But his claim that signing Neymar from Brazilian club Santos had cost “€57.1m full stop” has come under intense scrutiny. The day after his resignation, Barcelona’s new president, Josep Maria Bartomeu, admitted that the total cost of securing him, which is not the same as a “transfer fee”, was in fact €86.2m.

A further €44m in salary will be payable during his contract. That is surprisingly low. The investigation will now focus on the €29.1m difference and the beneficiaries of a €40m payment to Neymar’s father’s company, N&N.

Rosell did not take questions as he presented his resignation, insisting that he was walking away in order to prevent what he called “unjustified attacks on the club” from affecting Barcelona. He insisted that the operation to sign Neymar was “correct” and implied that the unravelling of the case was due to the “jealousy” of the club’s rivals. He also revealed that he had suffered threats. “I cannot put my family in danger,” he said.

Bartomeu will, in principle, continue until the end of Rosell’s term in 2016, although opposition groups will mobilise to push for elections earlier. Joan Laporta, the former president and Rosell’s rival, is planning a return. The pair began as friends, campaigning partners and president and vice-president but fell out spectacularly and have been sworn enemies since. Charismatic and hugely successful during his previous term, Laporta remains extremely popular with supporters. In contrast, Rosell’s presidency has been marked by poor communication and mistakes that have seen his popularity diminish rapidly.

Rosell had repeatedly avoided demands to clarify the exact figures beyond the €57.1m sum that the club had already made public, citing confidentiality clauses. But on Friday Bartomeu was joined by the club’s director of football, Raúl Sanllehí, as they sought to explain the outlay. Bartomeu admitted that it was a “mistake” not to have explained the full figures before and that the actual transfer fee remained €57.1m.

According to those figures, Barcelona paid €17.1m to Santos and €40m to a company called N&N, owned by Neymar’s father, who held the player’s economic rights. Bartomeu insisted that N&N is separate from the player himself. Those €40m were registered in the original contracts as a “penalty” clause that referred to an agreement made well before a deal was reached with Santos.

There is a further €2m bonus payable to Santos should Neymar be a finalist in the Ballon d’Or vote. Because Santos did not own 100% of Neymar’s rights, the money they received had to be divided among their Brazilian partners, which includes an investment fund.

According to Barcelona, the rest of the money is made up of a €10m signing-on bonus, a €2.7m agent’s fee paid to Neymar’s father, €2.5m in social work with Neymar’s foundation, €7.9m on collaboration with Santos, €4m on marketing rights (€0.8m a year for the duration of his contract), and €2m to N&N for scouting work to be done by Neymar’s father. Neymar would also earn €8.8m a year in wages. Even if those figures are accepted, there remain serious doubts as to the true destination of the money and the reasons why the package was put together in such a complex and seemingly opaque manner.

For Barca admirers, perhaps the saving grace in the episode lies in how the scandal came to light in the first place. Barcelona prides itself on being a members club, with a elected president.

Rosell’s unravelling started with a formal, legal complaint made by a member, Jordi Cases, who had questioned the real beneficiaries of the €40m paid to N&N. The public prosecutor then expressed doubts about the amount received by Santos and requested that all the paperwork be handed over, with which Barcelona complied.

Rosell leaves still insisting that neither he nor the club has done anything wrong. But even if the courts do find in his favour, it will be too late to save his presidency.

• Neymar
• Barcelona
• European club football

Sid Lowe

theguardian.com