Racing Santander Accuses Barcelona of Avoiding Sell-On Fee in Pablo Torre Transfer

Racing Santander has reported Barcelona to La Liga, accusing the club of deliberately avoiding paying a sell-on fee related to the transfer of young midfielder Pablo Torre.

Barcelona signed Torre from Racing in 2022 for €5 million ($5.9 million), agreeing to give Racing a share of any future transfer profits. At the time, these profits were expected to be significant.

However, after three years and 27 appearances, Barcelona sold Torre to Mallorca this summer for €4.95 million, meaning they did not make a profit and therefore did not owe Racing any additional fees.

Racing believes Barcelona structured the deal intentionally to avoid paying the sell-on clause. In their complaint, Racing claims Barcelona values Torre at €10 million, which matches the buy-back clause agreed with Mallorca during the transfer.

Racing’s president, Manolo Higuera, reportedly said at a recent shareholders’ meeting, “They structured the transfer in a way that avoided paying Racing, and therefore they’ve left us without what we’re owed. We don’t want any confrontation with Barcelona, but we have to defend our interests.”

When Torre joined Barcelona in 2022, there were high hopes for him. He was called “the next Pedri” and was also reportedly pursued by Real Madrid. After a short time with Barcelona’s reserve team, he was promoted to the senior squad, making 13 appearances in the 2022–23 season before being loaned to Girona for more playing time.

At Girona, Torre made 29 appearances but started only five matches. He returned to Barcelona aiming to prove himself and became a useful squad player under coach Hansi Flick, scoring three La Liga goals. However, it became clear he would struggle to secure a regular starting spot.

With the need to raise funds, Barcelona decided to sell Torre to struggling Mallorca but included a buy-back clause, which Racing suspects is part of the plan to avoid paying them.

Torre has made 17 appearances for Mallorca so far, moving in and out of the starting lineup and still waiting to score his first goal for the club.