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Osasuna, the Spanish club that finished seventh in La Liga last season, has been barred from playing in the UEFA Europa Conference League 2023-24 by UEFA inspectors because of a scandal from almost ten years ago.
The decision is based on a match-fixing scandal that involved the club's former board of directors in the 2013-14 season. The scandal, known as 'Caso-Osasuna', resulted in several former club officials being convicted for diverting €650,000 of club funds to pay opposition players to influence results.
UEFA inspectors have found that the scandal violated Article 50(3) of their competition regulations, which states that a club cannot be involved in any activity intended to organize or influence the outcome of a game. Osasuna have said that they will appeal the decision at UEFA's competition body's appeal committee. The club has claimed that they were the victims of the money diversion and that the Spanish courts have recognized that.
"Strong with the weak and weak with the strong, the UEFA courts have not wanted to take into account that it was the Spanish courts themselves who have literally declared that Osasuna has been the victim of the diversion of money carried out by some of its former directors behind the back of the highest governing body of the entity, the Assembly, and the control mechanisms of the club itself,” the statement from the club read.
The statement continued, “We are prepared for the worst, but we must not abandon the motto that has accompanied us in the reconstruction of the club for the last nine years: Osasuna never gives up."
Osasuna qualified for the Europa Conference League after finishing seventh in La Liga last season, ahead of Athletic Bilbao on goal difference. If Osasuna's appeal is unsuccessful, Athletic Bilbao will take their place in the Europa Conference League. UEFA has another investigation against Barcelona regarding the Negreira case which accuses the club of paying referees to get a favorable result but as of now, there is no outcome of that investigation.
