JOAN LAPORTA LABELS ATLéTICO TIE A "DISGRACE" FOLLOWING VAR-FUELED CHAMPIONS LEAGUE EXIT
Joan Laporta attacks UEFA officiating after Barcelona's exit to Atlético Madrid. Read the full "robbery" claims and VAR analysis.
Barcelona president Joan Laporta didn’t hide his frustration after the Champions League quarterfinal loss to Atlético Madrid, calling the refereeing “disgraceful” and vowing to take the matter to UEFA.
Barça beat Atlético 2-1 at the Metropolitano, but that wasn’t enough. They lost the tie 3-2 on aggregate, after dropping the first leg 2-0 at home the week before.
After the match, injured forward Raphinha called the result a “robbery.” Laporta backed him up the next day, telling reporters, “First of all, congrats to Atlético for making the semifinals, but that doesn’t mean I’m letting the refereeing go. It was a disgrace. In the first leg, we didn’t get a penalty for a Marc Pubill handball, and Pau Cubarsí got a red card when it should’ve been a yellow. Giuliano Simeone didn’t even have control of the ball.”
He went on, “The ref actually got it right with the yellow at first, but VAR stepped in and made it a red card. That really hurt our chances. The referees played a massive part in how this tie went. The second leg was more of the same.”
After the first game, Barça filed an official complaint to UEFA, arguing they were owed a penalty when Pubill handled the ball after keeper Juan Musso appeared to restart play. They also thought Pubill, who was already booked, should’ve been sent off. UEFA shot the complaint down, calling it “inadmissible.”
Laporta didn’t run out of grievances in Madrid, either. He pointed to Eric García’s red card in the 79th minute, Ferran Torres’ goal being ruled offside, a penalty shout for a foul on Dani Olmo, and Musso’s reckless challenge that left Fermín López with a bloody mouth.
“For Eric’s red card, Jules Koundé was there to cover, so Eric wasn’t the last man,” Laporta said. “The referee already had the yellow out, but VAR stepped in again. Ferran’s offside call was harsh, and we should’ve got a penalty for Olmo. Then there was that kick to Fermín’s face, no card, nothing. Totally unacceptable. We filed a complaint after the first leg, and UEFA told us it was ‘inadmissible.’ Well, we’re not done. We’re asking for more answers, and we’ll keep pushing because this whole situation is what’s really inadmissible.”
Barça actually started strong, with Lamine Yamal and Torres scoring early to inspire hope of a comeback. But Ademola Lookman put Atlético back in control, and when García got sent off, Barça spent the last 15 minutes with only ten men. Their wait for another Champions League title, going back to 2015, drags on.
Atlético, still hunting for their first Champions League trophy, now move on to face either Arsenal or Sporting CP in the semifinal.
Barça’s young star Lamine Yamal tried to lift spirits afterwards, posting on social media: “We gave everything, but it wasn’t enough. This is part of the journey. If you want to reach the top, you have to keep climbing. We know it won’t be easy, and not everyone wants to make it easy for us, but we don’t quit. Every mistake is a lesson. We’re Barça, and we’ll get back to where we belong. My parents taught me to keep my word, and we’ll bring the Champions League back to Barcelona.”
ARSENAL POCKET INSANE £125.18M FOLLOWING CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FINAL QUALIFICATION
Mikel Arteta's side has added £15.97m to their cash reserves, eclipsing the total earned by current champions PSG last year.
Arsenal have added another £15.97 million to their UEFA prize money haul after securing a spot in the Champions League final with a win against Atletico Madrid. They are set to face either Bayern Munich or the current champions, Paris Saint-Germain, in Budapest on May 30, aiming for their first-ever triumph in this prestigious competition.
Beyond that, there’s an additional £5.61 million up for grabs in Hungary later this month. But up to now, Arsenal have amassed an eye-watering £125.18 million in Champions League prize money this season alone. A place in next season’s European Super Cup also carries a potential reward of around £3.45 million. It’s been a remarkable European run under Mikel Arteta, with the team dominating the group stage by winning all eight matches.
From the very beginning, the club benefited from the initial distribution of TV revenue and the rankings pool, which together amounted to £49.6 million. Even before the knockout rounds kicked off, Arsenal had already secured £85.3 million in prize money.
That total doesn’t even cover the bonuses linked to their on-field success, as each of their eight victories in the group stage brought in roughly £15.8 million altogether.
By finishing first out of 36 group-phase clubs, Arsenal earned an extra £8.6 million, and progressing straight to the round of 16 as one of the top eight teams secured them another £11.3 million.
They continued their strong run by eliminating Bayer Leverkusen after a 1-1 draw away and a 2-0 win at the Emirates, which added £10.8 million more to their earnings.
Overcoming Sporting CP in the quarter-finals also brought a £10.8 million bonus. While Arsenal’s motivation isn’t just financial, this level of income certainly aids in meeting profit and sustainability rules and other financial fair play criteria.
It’s also likely to support their summer transfer budget, as sporting director Andrea Berta looks to build on Arteta’s squad.
Last season, Arsenal took home £98.63 million after reaching the semi-finals before falling to PSG.
PSG, who went on to win the title, collected about £124.62 million last year, so Arsenal have now already surpassed that figure.
Meanwhile, UEFA has set aside a record £2.13 billion in prize money for the 2025-26 Champions League season, highlighting the competition’s growing financial stakes.
JAN OBLAK CONFESSES ATLETICO WERE "AFRAID TO PLAY" AGAINST ARSENAL
Following their Champions League exit, skipper Jan Oblak analysed where Atletico went wrong and paid tribute to Griezmann.
Jan Oblak didn’t hold back after Atletico Madrid crashed out of the Champions League against Arsenal. He said straight up that the team just didn’t do enough to earn a spot in the final. Sure, he’s proud of how far the squad has come recently, but the way they went out still stings.
Oblak was pretty open about where things went wrong, especially after the first leg, when Atletico failed to take an advantage back to London. “I'm disappointed, just like all the fans. Honestly, I can’t find the words. We didn’t do enough to be in the final, and it’s just a tough moment. We had our chances to win, but we didn’t take them. All that’s left is to congratulate Arsenal.”
He didn’t stop there, either. Speaking to CBS Golazo, Oblak was even more direct about the team’s mentality, especially in the first half of both matches. He felt Atletico were hesitant, too respectful of Arsenal, and afraid to play. Both times, they fell behind before halftime and then tried to play catch-up, but it was always a little too late. “This has happened several times this season,” Oblak said, “and while we’ve managed to win those games before, not today when it mattered most.”
On the flip side, Oblak did give some credit to the young players and the growth the team’s shown, especially after a couple of big summers that saw a huge part of the squad change. “The last two seasons, we’ve switched out something like 15 players. A lot of young guys with not much experience came in. They did great in the cup, and they’ve held up in the Champions League too. In the league, we weren’t good enough for the biggest matches, but I’m proud of how the younger ones are growing. Still, when the goal is to win a title, and you don’t, you can’t call it a success. All we can do is look forward and hope we’ll be fighting for trophies next season.”
Saying goodbye to Antoine Griezmann made this exit even sadder for Oblak and the rest of the squad. Griezmann’s heading to Orlando City this summer, bringing the curtain down on his Champions League career with Atletico. “Everyone’s going to miss Griezi; he’s an incredible player and a great guy. The kind of person who’s always smiling, always positive, and does things on the pitch nobody else can. We’ll miss him a lot; the fans will miss him, but he deserves nothing but the best wherever he goes.”
At 33, Oblak is one of Atletico’s true leaders, right behind Koke for the captain’s armband. Alongside Jose Maria Gimenez and Marcos Llorente, he’s been a
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