Spanish National Court Proposes Trial for Ángel Villar

The Spanish National Court judge has recommended putting former Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) president Ángel María Villar on trial for a series of contracts that allegedly caused 4.5 million euros in losses to the organization.

Judge Francisco de Jorge has indicted the former RFEF president for obtaining various contracts between 2007 and 2017. These contracts, mostly arranging friendly matches for the Spanish national team, allegedly benefited Villar’s son while causing financial harm to the federation. The arrangements with the president’s son, rather than directly with RFEF, provided significant cost savings to the opposing federations.

The National Court is now proposing to bring Villar to trial for alleged crimes including disloyal administration, business corruption, misappropriation of funds, and falsification of commercial documents. His son, Gorka Villar, and former RFEF vice-president Juan Padrón are also being prosecuted. This investigation, which began in 2017, aimed to determine if the former president and vice-president abused their positions for personal gain or to benefit those close to them. The judge has concluded that their actions caused 4.5 million euros in damages to RFEF. Ángel María Villar will now have to appear in court to address these alleged offenses.