In relation to the purchase of economic rights of football players and the financing of transfers and clubs

• The investigation, initiated by the Special Prosecutor's Office against Corruption and Organized Crime, is led by the Central Court of Instruction No. 5 of the National Court.
• A hundred agents from the Central Operative Unit of the Civil Guard (UCO) and officials from the National Fraud Investigation Office (ONIF) of the AEAT are participating.
• The investigation focuses on operations carried out in Spain by an investment fund based in Malta, which invested in the purchase of economic rights of football players.

July 17, 2019 .- Officials from the National Fraud Investigation Office (ONIF) of the Tax Agency and agents from the Central Operative Unit (UCO) of the Civil Guard, within the framework of Operation 'Dean', are carrying out different actions in the provinces of Madrid, Alicante, Valencia, Asturias, Seville, Cádiz, Granada, Murcia and the Balearic Islands, in order to obtain evidence of alleged tax crimes and money laundering.

These actions are under the direction and coordination of the Central Court of Instruction number 5 of the National Court, which has ordered the execution of several searches in homes, as well as requests for documentation from several companies.

The investigation began early last year, focusing on operations carried out in Spain by an investment fund established in 2011 and based in Malta.

The activities of this fund consisted of purchasing the economic rights of promising football players, seeking to achieve capital gains from their transfers to third-party teams. He also financed transfers and provided liquidity to Spanish football clubs in financial difficulties, all under the advice of law firms.

The agreements with Spanish football clubs appear to have been negotiated in Spain by two representatives of footballers, who may have pretended to be tax residents outside Spain, so as not to declare the profits obtained to the Treasury.

More than 5 million euros

The frauds detected involved a complex corporate structure that would have allowed the benefits of loans and the sale of the economic rights of football players to be concealed, with the amount allegedly defrauded from the Spanish Treasury being estimated at more than 5 million euros.

At the moment, five people are under investigation and several dozen will testify. Furthermore, due to the international impact, several countries have been asked for collaboration.