The online news site, which had access to documents and private audio messages between Pique and RFEF president Luis Rubiales, reports that the Spanish football federation receives €40m per season for each of the six editions organized in Saudi Arabia since 2020 (i.e. EUR 240m in total), while Kosmos receives EUR 4m per season, or EUR 24m in total.
"Pique had a decisive role in the negotiations for the Supercopa de España to be hosted in Saudi Arabia, and throughout this process enjoyed preferential treatment from Rubiales, for reasons yet to be determined. A spokesperson for Pique has denied that he received any special treatment," El Confidencial wrote on Monday.
Contacted by AFP, Kosmos has so far not responded.
The first edition of the Spanish Super Cup in the territory of this Gulf monarchy took place in January 2020 between FC Barcelona, Real Madrid, Atlético Madrid and Valencia CF, and was won by Real Madrid ( 0-0, 4-1 on pens against Atlético in the final).
A few weeks before this first edition, Rubiales had already confirmed in a press conference that Kosmos had intervened in the negotiations with Saudi Arabia, and had stressed that the federation had made no direct payment to the company founded by Pique, avoiding thus a breach of its code of ethics adopted unanimously by the federation in December 2019.
On Thursday, the RFEF denounced in a statement that it had been the victim of a "computer attack within the framework of a criminal action" and indicated that "private documents, conversations and audios of the President and the Secretary General" were stolen.
The president of the Spanish Federation (RFEF) Luis Rubiales comforts Marcelino the coach of Bilbao, beaten by Real Madrid in the Spanish Supercup in Riyadh, January 16, 2022 – AFP / Archives
In remarks reported Monday by the sports daily Marca, the best-selling newspaper in Spain, the federation considered that "this information does not bring anything new compared to what was made public in 2019".
"All the figures for the operation had been presented, explained and voted on by the assembly. This is part of the campaign of harassment and discredit to which we are accustomed", explains a leader of the federation, quoted by Marca.
© 2022 AFP