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Alexandre "Sandro" Rosell Feliu (; born 6 March 1964) is a Spanish businessman. He earned an
MBA A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accoun ...
degree from
ESADE Esade (Escola Superior d'Administració i Direcció d'Empreses) is a prestigious international private educational institution based in Barcelona, Spain. Esade runs two schools of the university, Esade Business School and Esade Law School, as wel ...
. Rosell ran as senior adviser of
Joan Laporta Joan Laporta Estruch (; born 29 June 1962) is a Spanish politician and current president of FC Barcelona. Laporta is a lawyer (he graduated from the University of Barcelona) with his own firm, Laporta & Arbós, which has a number of notable Sp ...
during the 2003
FC Barcelona Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly referred to as Barcelona and colloquially known as Barça (), is a professional Football team, football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of Spanish footb ...
elections and was the vice-president of sports until June 2005. He was the president of FC Barcelona from 2010 to 2014. In 2017, Rosell was jailed without bail as part of a money laundering investigation related to buying television rights for past matches of the Brazil national team. On 24 April 2019, after a total of 643 days of pre-trial detention and with the provisional release of Rosell having been rejected on as much as 13 occasions, Spanish courts fully acquitted Rosell.


FC Barcelona


Elections in 2003

Rosell and
Joan Laporta Joan Laporta Estruch (; born 29 June 1962) is a Spanish politician and current president of FC Barcelona. Laporta is a lawyer (he graduated from the University of Barcelona) with his own firm, Laporta & Arbós, which has a number of notable Sp ...
joined forces in 2003 to support the latter's bid to become president of FC Barcelona. After winning by a large majority, Rosell attempted to make the election pledge of bringing
David Beckham David Robert Joseph Beckham (; born 2 May 1975) is an English former professional footballer, the current president and co-owner of Inter Miami CF and co-owner of Salford City. Known for his range of passing, crossing ability and bending f ...
to the club a reality. At the time, Rosell claimed he was "80% confident" that the move would take place. Beckham, however, chose to join Barcelona's fierce rivals,
Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid. Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...
. As a result, the Barcelona board opted to try and sign Brazilian star
Ronaldinho Ronaldo de Assis Moreira (born 21 March 1980), commonly known as Ronaldinho Gaúcho () or simply Ronaldinho, is a Brazilian retired professional footballer who played mostly as an attacking midfielder, but was also deployed as a winger. Wide ...
from
Paris Saint-Germain Paris Saint-Germain Football Club (), commonly referred to as Paris Saint-Germain, Paris, Paris SG or simply PSG is a professional football club based in Paris, France. They compete in Ligue 1, the top division of French football. As F ...
. The Catalan club were in direct competition for the Brazilian with
Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
, who wanted him as a replacement for the England international. At a time of financial uncertainty, the capture of Ronaldinho was crucial for Barcelona. It is widely believed that Ronaldinho signed for Barcelona instead of the
Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
Champions because of his friendship with Rosell, a former
Nike Nike often refers to: * Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory * Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment Nike may also refer to: People * Nike (name), a surname and feminine given ...
executive in Brazil. Rosell resigned as vice-president of sports in June 2005, despite Barcelona winning the title that year, accusing Laporta of failing to carry their combined original plan for the club.


Following his resignation from the Board of Directors in 2005

In 2006, Rosell released a book ''Benvingut al món real'' (''Welcome to the real world''), just as Barcelona were on the verge of reaching the
UEFA Champions League The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competi ...
final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: * Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of con ...
, which they eventually won. It was seen as a direct attack on club president Laporta after it promised to reveal the problems that had caused Rosell to resign. When the opportunity for elections at FC Barcelona arose in 2006, due to a successful challenge by club members who claimed Joan Laporta had completed a four-year term, Rosell did not put his name forward to challenge his former friend. When asked if he would put his name forward in future elections, Rosell replied that he would "never say never." After his resignation, Rosell was a critic of Laporta, criticizing his handling of problems at Barcelona and claiming that in "all areas of the club" there has been "absolute anarchy."Goal.com Rosell Slams Barcelona Over Ronaldinho And Arshavin
/ref> However, he did support Laporta's choice of manager in
Pep Guardiola Josep "Pep" Guardiola Sala (; born 18 January 1971) is a Spanish professional football manager and former player, who is the current manager of club Manchester City. He is considered one of the greatest managers of all time and holds the ...
, saying that it was "how it should be" and also supported Laporta's decision to sign an agreement with
UNICEF UNICEF (), originally called the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund in full, now officially United Nations Children's Fund, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing humanitarian and developmental aid t ...
.


2010 Elections

Rosell announced on 27 June 2008, at a press conference, that he intended to campaign for the presidency of FC Barcelona in 2010 after the end of the contract of Joan Laporta. At the time, Laporta was about to face a no-confidence motion brought about by Oriol Giralt which Rosell supported. Laporta himself accused Rosell of being behind the motion. When asked why he would be voting against Laporta, Rosell said that it was because the current management "is not independent or transparent or democratic". On 13 June, Rosell was elected president of FC Barcelona with more than 60% of the vote of club members. He replaced outgoing President Joan Laporta on 1 July 2010.


Presidency

In July 2012, Rosell confirmed that his club Barcelona had achieved record profits of
The euro sign () is the currency sign used for the euro, the official currency of the eurozone and unilaterally adopted by Kosovo and Montenegro. The design was presented to the public by the European Commission on 12 December 1996. It consists o ...
45 million for the previous season despite his side winning neither the
Liga Liga or LIGA may refer to: People * Līga (name), a Latvian female given name * Luciano Ligabue, more commonly known as Ligabue or ''Liga'', Italian rock singer-songwriter Sports * Liga ACB, men's professional basketball league in Spain * Li ...
title nor the Champions League. On 23 January 2014, Rosell resigned as president after judge Pablo Ruz ordered the start of a hearing to investigate Rosell for alleged misappropriation of funds over the signing of Brazil forward
Neymar Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior (born 5 February 1992), known as Neymar, is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain and the Brazil national team. A prolific goalscorer and renowned play ...
, saying Rosell could be called in person to give evidence. After Rosell resigned, his successor Josep Maria Bartomeu revealed that the true cost of the
transfer Transfer may refer to: Arts and media * ''Transfer'' (2010 film), a German science-fiction movie directed by Damir Lukacevic and starring Zana Marjanović * ''Transfer'' (1966 film), a short film * ''Transfer'' (journal), in management studies ...
was not the €57.1m announced by Rosell, but rather €86.2m, with €40m going to a company owned by Neymar's father. Barcelona was investigated for tax fraud, and
Santos FC Santos Futebol Clube (), commonly known simply as Santos or Santos FC and nicknamed the ''Peixe'' (; "fish"), is a Brazilian sports club based in Vila Belmiro, a ''bairro'' in the city of Santos. It is also the team with the most goals in ...
unsuccessfully sued to receive more of the transfer fee than the €17.1m they were initially given.


Major signings during presidency


Trophies won by club during presidency

*
La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known simply as Primera División in Spain, and as La Liga in English-speaking countries and officially as LaLiga Santander for sponsorship reasons, stylized as LaLiga, is the men' ...
(2): **
2010–11 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. ...
,
2012–13 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. ...
*
Copa del Rey The Campeonato de España–Copa de Su Majestad el Rey, commonly known as Copa del Rey or simply La Copa and formerly known as Copa del Presidente de la República (1932–36) and Copa del Generalísimo (1939–76), is an annual knockout footb ...
(1): ** 2011–12 *
Supercopa de España The Supercopa de España or the ''Spanish Super Cup'' is a super cup tournament in Spanish football. Founded in 1982 as a two-team competition, the current version has been contested since 2019–20 by four teams: the winners and runners-up of ...
(3): **
2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...
, 2011,
2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment ...
*
UEFA Champions League The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competi ...
(1): **
2010–11 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. ...
*
UEFA Super Cup The UEFA Super Cup is an annual super cup football match organised by UEFA and contested by the winners of the two main European club competitions; the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League. The competition's official name was original ...
: (1) ** 2011 *
FIFA Club World Cup The FIFA Club World Cup is an international men's association football competition organised by the ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The competition was first contested in 200 ...
: (1) ** 2011


Business activities

In 2008, Rosell founded Ailanto, a sports-marketing firm dedicated to organize football events in Brazil. In November 2008, Ailanto was given the rights by the president of the
Brazilian Football Confederation The Brazilian Football Confederation ( pt, Confederação Brasileira de Futebol; CBF) is the governing body of football in Brazil. It was founded on Monday, 8 June 1914, as , and renamed Confederação Brasileira de Desportos in 1916. The foo ...
(CBF),
Ricardo Teixeira Ricardo Terra Teixeira (; born June 20, 1947) is the former president of the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF). He was in the office from January 16, 1989 to March 12, 2012. In July 2012 a Swiss prosecutor's report revealed that, during his ...
, to organize a friendly match between
Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
and
Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, In recognized minority languages of Portugal: :* mwl, República Pertuesa is a country located on the Iberian Peninsula, in Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Macaronesian ...
. A week before the match, to be played in
Brasília Brasília (; ) is the federal capital of Brazil and seat of government of the Federal District. The city is located at the top of the Brazilian highlands in the country's Central-West region. It was founded by President Juscelino Kubitsche ...
, the government of the
Federal District A federal district is a type of administrative division of a federation, usually under the direct control of a federal government and organized sometimes with a single municipal body. Federal districts often include capital districts, and they ...
signed a contract to pay Ailanto R$9 million (
US$ The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...
4 million at the time) for the marketing rights and for other loosely defined services, including arranging transport and accommodation for both teams' players. That deal was investigated for padding and corruption. The public prosecutor's office in Brasília said that receipted expenditure relating to the game was only around R$1 million, and that in any case the Football Federation of Brasília (FBF), an affiliate of the CBF, had paid. It also said that, although the Federal District government bought the rights to the game, the money from ticket sales flowed to the FBF. Brasília's police force investigated irregularities and searched Ailanto's premises in
Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of the same name, Brazil's List of Brazilian states by population, third-most populous state, and the List of largest citi ...
, seizing documents.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rosell, Sandro 1964 births Living people Businesspeople from Barcelona ESADE alumni FC Barcelona presidents Catalan prisoners and detainees