Barcelona and
Espanyol will be
ineligible to play
in La Liga if
Catalonia
becomes an independent country,
Spanish FA president Javier Tebas
claimed.
A referendum will be held on
November 9, with potentially
destructive results for the 22-time
Spanish champions Barca and
neighbours Espanyol.
Liga de Futbol Profesional (LFP)
president Tebas said a 'yes' vote
would make the two clubs'
participation in the Spanish top
flight illegal.
"Barcelona and Espanyol would
not play in the Spanish League if
Catalonia becomes independent
for the following reason: the
Sports Act has an additional
provision that only one non-
Spanish state can play in La Liga or
official Spanish competitions, and
that is Andorra," Tebas told
Spanish radio station Onda Cero.
Tebas conceded if Catalonia did
become independent, changes to
the law secluding Barcelona and
Espanyol from the league could be
put on the agenda.
"For that to take place there would
need to be a change in parliament
and we'd need to see if the
affected industry would agree or
not," Tebas said.
On the issue of match-fixing,
Tebas confirmed the LFP were
investigating a fixture between
Elche and Malaga - one of six
matches under the microscope.
"I have not believed what has
been said for some time now. I
think it's been increasingly evident
in recent times," Tebas said.
"Some dressing rooms are taking
extreme weight from above. I
don't know if Spanish football is
prepared to see a player go to jail
for a year, but there will definitely
be penalties, just like the ones you
see in other countries.
"We are investigating the Elche-
Malaga game, but this one is a
little different. We are looking at
two [or] three players from the
Malaga team but we're not sure
about Elche yet.
"For the last four years, we've got
six games that we're
investigating.
"People want us to have a clean
game. I haven't received a call
from any manager who has taken
issue with what we're planning to
do."

Source: m.goal.com/x/en-ng/news/5165614