A Spanish court has rejected a criminal case brought on behalf of Brazilian third-party investors DIS in relation to Neymar's move to Barcelona.
DIS says it was cut out of Neymar's move to the Camp Nou in 2013, believing it owned 40 percent of his rights but receiving less than 10 percent of the almost €100 million transfer fee.
Audiencia Nacional Judge Jose de la Mata heard the case brought by the investment company, and he left the possibility of civil proceedings open after finding that FIFA regulations were "clearly not properly followed" in the deal.
Barca at first claimed the transfer fee was €57.1 million but later admitted to paying out much more, with much of the undeclared fee going to companies controlled by Neymar Sr. [N&N]. Only €17.1m went to Santos, with DIS getting 40 percent of that portion - €6.8m.
DIS chief Delcir Sonda brought legal cases in both Brazil and Spain to claim a larger share, that could have seen Neymar Sr., Barca president Josep Maria Bartomeu and predecessor Sandro Rosell go to jail. They all gave evidence in front of Judge De La Mata earlier this year.
According to Catalan radio, AS, and El Mundo, De la Mata has accepted their reasoning and decided that the criminal case should not go forward.
However, quoting from the judgement, Europa Press and El Pais said that a civil case may yet proceed as many of FIFA's usual transfer rules had been broken.
"It seems clear that Futbol Club Barcelona, Neymar and his father clearly did not follow the obligations imposed by FIFA's transfer statutes," the judgement says. "The contract Neymar Jr. had signed with Santos FC was not respected. They did not communicate in writing with Santos their intention to open [or close] negotiations.
"They did not ask for authorisation to that end. They negotiated during the period of the contract and outside the permitted time of the last six months. They made and received multi-million payments just eight days before a huge game in football history."
A recent pact between Barca and the local tax authorities, in which Barca agreed to pay €15 million in back taxes and a €5.5 million fine with all individuals involved cleared of wrongdoing, may have helped Barca in this case.
In that agreement, Barca accepted that extras in the initial deal were actually salary paid to Neymar and therefore liable for income tax -- which means that none of this money is part of the transfer fee and therefore DIS may not be entitled to any of it.
Ex-Barca president Joan Laporta has sought to stop the pact with the tax authorities, saying it damages the club while absolving the current Blaugrana board. Europa Press says that challenge has not been accepted by the court.
Neymar recently agreed a new five-year contract at the Camp Nou, and is currently in Brazil preparing to captain his country at the Olympic Games in August.