04/23/24 10:04:00
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04/23 10:03 CDT Spanish judge freezes a bank account of Piqu's company amid
probe into Saudi deal to host Super Cup
Spanish judge freezes a bank account of Piqu's company amid probe into Saudi
deal to host Super Cup
By JOSEPH WILSON
Associated Press
BARCELONA, Spain (AP) --- A Spanish judge has ordered a bank account of a
company run by former Barcelona player Gerard Piqu to be frozen while she
investigates suspicions of corruption in the hosting of the Spanish Super Cup
in Saudi Arabia.
A Spanish court confirmed local news reports saying that the investigating
judge, Delia Rodrigo, acted Tuesday on a request by state prosecutors to place
a freeze on a bank account belonging to Kosmos sports entertainment company,
which was started and run by Piqu.
Kosmos did not immediately reply to a request for comment.
Spanish police arrested ex-federation president Luis Rubiales earlier this
month as part of a corruption and money laundering probe into activities under
his mandate. Another seven people had previously been arrested in March when
police raided the federation offices in Madrid and a residence belonging to
Rubiales in Granada.
Rubiales took the Spanish Super Cup to Saudi Arabia in 2020 for a deal that was
reportedly worth 40 million euros (then $42 million) per tournament. Piqu, who
was playing for Barcelona at that time and played in the Spanish Super Cup,
helped get that deal done via his Kosmos company.
State prosecutors opened a probe of that deal in 2022 following leaked audio
files of conversations between Rubiales and Piqu regarding millions of dollars
in commissions.
Piqu has since retired from soccer. Kosmos was involved in revamping tennis'
Davis Cup and also starting the alternative King's League soccer competition in
Spain.
Rubiales stepped down in September after causing an international scandal for
kissing player Jenni Hermoso on the lips without her consent during the awards
ceremony for the Women's World Cup final.
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AP sports: https://apnews.com/sports
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