Nou Camp side handed hefty punishment following FIFA investigation.
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Catalan giants Barcelona have been handed a transfer ban following an investigation into the club’s dealings in the market, primarily in relation to the manner in which the Nou Camp side has registered and signed players under the age of 18.
A report on FIFA’s official website confirms that Barcelona will be unable to sign players for the next two transfer windows and have additionally been fined just over £300k.
FIFA has also censured the Spanish football federation (RFEF) for failing to prevent the breaches and have been hit with a similar financial penalty to Barcelona.
The investigations uncovered instances of several minor players who were incorrectly registered who have subsequently participated in competitions with the club between 2009 and 2013.
This action comes hot off the heels of the controversy surrounding the signing of Brazilian youngster Neymar, which led to an investigation for alleged misappropriation of funds, which in turn led to the resignation of club president Sandro Rosell.
Barcelona will no doubt seek recourse to appeal FIFA’s ruling but as it stands the club will not be able to sign any players until the summer of 2015.
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