According to the document made public by the RFEF this morning, Soto Grado has been punished with a long-term suspension – the exact details of which are kept confidential for the moment, but which far exceeds any known precedent – after a series of serious professional errors detected in the match that ended with a 2-1 victory for Girona. The Federation considers that these referee decisions constituted a “clear deprivation of obvious scoring opportunities” for the visiting team, FC Barcelona, ​​which decisively altered the development and result of the match.

The official statement from the RFEF highlights verbatim: “After the exhaustive analysis of the referee report, the images of the match and the evaluations of the Technical Committee of Referees (CTA), an accumulation of serious and repeated errors has been found that compromise the integrity and fairness of the competition.

These actions include the validation of a local goal preceded by a clear, unsanctioned foul—a stomp on defender Jules Koundé in the 1-1 play by Fran Beltrán—without the referee or the VAR intervening to correct the infraction, despite it being an identical action to others previously punished in previous matches. Likewise, omissions were recorded in the application of unified criteria in contact plays in the area and in the management of cards that influenced the balance of the match.”

The sanction, described by the RFEF itself as “the harshest disciplinary measure ever imposed by this institution in the entire history of LaLiga”, responds not only to the specific events of Girona-Barça, but also to a history of controversial actions by the Rioja referee in matches involving FC Barcelona.

Soto Grado has refereed the Blaugrana team on 16 occasions throughout his career, with a record of seven wins, three draws and six defeats for the culés, but with multiple controversial episodes: from goals disallowed due to highly discussed positional offsides to unreported penalties or questioned expulsions.

Monday’s game in Montilivi became the definitive trigger. Barcelona, ​​which came after a painful elimination in the Copa del Rey against Atlético de Madrid (4-0 in the first leg of the semi-finals), needed the three points to regain the lead provisionally ceded to Real Madrid. However, the match went awry with referee decisions that, according to the statement, deprived Hansi Flick’s team of clear opportunities.

The Gironista tying goal, validated despite the previous foul on Koundé, was the most notable: an action that the Argentine player himself, Claudio Echeverri, publicly recognized as “intense”, but that the refereeing body did not consider punishable. This omission, added to other controversies in the control of the game, led the RFEF to act with maximum forcefulness.

The decision has generated immediate reactions throughout the Spanish football ecosystem. From the Blaugrana environment, it is interpreted as a firm step towards the recovery of referee credibility after months of formal complaints presented by the Catalan club to the Federation and the CTA. Sources close to FC Barcelona have described the sanction as “a clear message that serious errors will not go unpunished, regardless of the team affected.”

For its part, Girona FC has opted for caution. The Catalan club, which has achieved an important victory in its fight for European positions, has avoided official statements regarding the sanction to the referee, focusing on the sporting merit of its players. However, in Montilivi there was a tense atmosphere during and after the game, with visible protests from the visiting bench and post-match statements by Hansi Flick in which he harshly criticized “the lack of coherence in the application of the rules.”

The RFEF Competition Committee, in charge of carrying out the sanction, has stressed that the measure seeks to “protect the image of LaLiga and guarantee maximum transparency and fairness in refereeing.” Federation sources consulted indicate that this is the first time that a First Division referee has received a punishment of such magnitude for accumulated errors in a single match, surpassing precedents such as temporary suspensions for negligent writing of minutes or specific controversial decisions.

César Soto Grado, international for several seasons and recognized in the past as one of the referees most valued by his colleagues (including the award for best referee of the 23-24 season), now sees his career drastically cut short. His appointment for Girona-Barça had already generated previous controversy, after complaints from Barcelona about previous performances – including the Clásico at the Bernabéu in November – and about a statistical pattern that many Barcelona fans consider suspicious: 87.5% of his games against Barça have been away.

With this sanction, the RFEF intends to send an unequivocal message at a key moment of the season, when the fight for the title, European places and relegation intensifies. Spanish football is now carefully observing the consequences: will this precedent mean a real change in the demands placed on referees? How will it affect the rest of the referees in the coming days?

The truth is that the official statement marks a before and after. The sanction against Soto Grado not only closes a controversial chapter of Girona-Barça, but also opens a profound debate on refereeing responsibility in LaLiga. Meanwhile, the championship continues its course: Barcelona will have to regroup without depending on external factors, and Girona will celebrate a victory that, despite the referee’s shadows, is recorded in the qualifying table.