Jean-Baptiste Sarrazin 20:56 p.m., April 18, 2023, modified at 21:04 p.m., April 18, 2023

Under fire since the revelation of the refereeing scandal, FC Barcelona and its president Joan Laporta have retaliated by accusing the rival of Real Madrid of being favored by refereeing. Madrid were quick to retaliate by publishing a video in which the club denounced the historical links between Franco and Barça.

It is a video that risks poisoning the pre-existing rivalry between Real Madrid and FC Barcelona. On Monday night, the Merengues posted a clip to answer accusations of favoritism on refereeing brought by Joan Laporta, the president of FC Barcelona. The Madrid video evokes in particular the historical links between the Catalan club and the dictatorial regime of Franco. The Real Madrid club brings up to date the key moments in the history of FC Barcelona and questions who was "the club of the regime" referring to the Spanish dictatorial regime from 1936 to 1975. Interviewed in Europe 1 Sport (every evening from 20 p.m. to 23 p.m.), the consultants reacted strongly to the controversy.

pic.twitter.com/kILbbHbnzv

— Real Madrid C.F. (@realmadrid) April 17, 2023

"It's even more rivalry, it's nonsense when you know the history of Spain," said Nicolas Tourriol at the microphone of Celine Geraud. For Luc Sonnor, "it lacks class even if this war between the two clubs does not date from today." Guy Roux, who said he was "shocked", goes even further and asks for "days in prison" for the two presidents.

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Against the background of the Negreira case

This response from Real Madrid follows the statement of Joan Laporta, president of Barça, who, when asked about the Negreira case, had said: "This club, which feels aggrieved sportingly, Real Madrid, is a club that has historically been favored by refereeing decisions, and this is still the case today. A club considered as the one of the regime."

This case is likely to go even further. Taken aback, the government of Catalonia asked Real Madrid to delete the video clip. The institution's spokeswoman, Patricia Plaja, described the accusations as "indecent fake news" and a "gross manipulation" of history.