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Tag: FC Barcelona

  • Napkin With Lionel Messi’s First FC Barcelona Contract Up For Auction, Read Details Here | football news

    Lionel Messi’s illustrious journey with Barcelona had an unconventional beginning—an iconic contract signed on a simple napkin. This extraordinary relic of football history is now poised to hit the auction block, with an initial bid starting at 300,000 pounds (USD 379,000).

    On it was written, “In Barcelona, ​​on 14 December 2000 and in the presence of Messrs Minguella and Horacio, Carles Rexach, FC Barcelona’s sporting director, hereinby agrees, under his responsibility and regardless of any dissenting opinions, to sign the player Lionel Messi. , provided that we keep to the amounts agreed upon.” (They Are Sharing Wives: Mikel Arteta’s Explosive Press Meet About Ben White And Oleksandr Zinchenko Sets Internet On Fire – WATCH)

    The renowned British auction house, Bonhams, is orchestrating the online auction scheduled to run from March 18 to 27. The auction represents Horacio Gaggioli, an agent from Messi’s homeland of Argentina, who played a crucial role in the agreement. (Mohun Bagan Super Giant vs East Bengal, Indian Super League (ISL) Football Live Score)

    Dated December 14, 2000, the napkin boasts the signatures of Gaggioli, along with another agent, Josep Maria Minguella, and Carles Rexach, the then-sporting director of Barcelona. This historic moment unfolded at a tennis club in Barcelona, ​​solidifying the initial agreement to sign Messi. The makeshift contract served as a reassuring gesture to his father, Jorge Messi, signaling the solidity of the deal. Following this informal pact, a more formal and comprehensive contract with the club was promptly arranged.

    Laporta: “Whoever buys Leo Messi’s napkin should hand it over to the club museum. We will not enter into any auctions.” pic.twitter.com/ivkcB3jstY Barça Universal (@BarcaUniversal) February 2, 2024

    Ian Ehling, heading the department of fine books and manuscripts at Bonhams New York, expressed his enthusiasm, deeming this artifact one of the most captivating he’s come across. Despite its humble origin as a paper napkin, its significance resonates through football history, forever altering Messi’s trajectory and Barcelona’s destiny, creating countless indelible moments for fans worldwide.

  • Music star Shakira to serve eight-year sentence in tax evasion case

    By AFP

    BARCELONA: Prosecutors in Barcelona said Friday that they would seek a prison sentence of more than eight years against global music superstar Shakira, after she rejected a plea deal on accusations of tax evasion.

    Prosecutors are demanding a fine of nearly 24 million euros on the 45-year-old “Hips don’t Lie” songstress, who is accused of defrauding the Spanish tax office out of 14.5 million euros ($14.7 million) on income earned between 2012 and 2014.

    The court will now need to decide on holding a trial and set a date.

    Prosecutors say Shakira moved to Spain in 2011 when her relationship with FC Barcelona defender Gerard Pique became public but maintained official tax residency in the Bahamas until 2015.

    Shakira has slammed the “complete violation of her rights” and “abusive methods” by the prosecutors and say they were “insisting on claiming money earned during my international tours and the show ‘The Voice’” on which she was a judge in the United States, when she was “not yet resident in Spain”.

    Shakira was on the singing competition show between 2013 and 2014.

    Shakira’s defence team argues she moved to Spain full-time only in 2015 and has met all tax obligations.

    She says she has paid 17.2 million euros to the Spanish tax authorities and she has “no debt to the treasury for many years”.

    BARCELONA: Prosecutors in Barcelona said Friday that they would seek a prison sentence of more than eight years against global music superstar Shakira, after she rejected a plea deal on accusations of tax evasion.

    Prosecutors are demanding a fine of nearly 24 million euros on the 45-year-old “Hips don’t Lie” songstress, who is accused of defrauding the Spanish tax office out of 14.5 million euros ($14.7 million) on income earned between 2012 and 2014.

    The court will now need to decide on holding a trial and set a date.

    Prosecutors say Shakira moved to Spain in 2011 when her relationship with FC Barcelona defender Gerard Pique became public but maintained official tax residency in the Bahamas until 2015.

    Shakira has slammed the “complete violation of her rights” and “abusive methods” by the prosecutors and say they were “insisting on claiming money earned during my international tours and the show ‘The Voice’” on which she was a judge in the United States, when she was “not yet resident in Spain”.

    Shakira was on the singing competition show between 2013 and 2014.

    Shakira’s defence team argues she moved to Spain full-time only in 2015 and has met all tax obligations.

    She says she has paid 17.2 million euros to the Spanish tax authorities and she has “no debt to the treasury for many years”.