Gerard Pique given two-month football suspension after numerous referee confrontations

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Martin Macdonald | Writer

Content writer covering football, formula 1 and movies

Barcelona legend Gerard Pique has been handed a two-month ban football following a series of incidents involving match officials this season.

His club, FC Andorra, currently play in the Segunda Division in Spain and were purchased by Piqué's Kosmos Holding Group in December of 2018. Under his ownership, they were promoted to Spain's second tier for the first time in their history in 2022.

They were subsequently relegated in 2024 but bounced back up the next season.

Pique has been at war with officials all season, and things came to a head on Friday night when Andorra were defeated 1-0 by Albacete.

The World Cup winner took umbrage to some of the decisions made and confronted the referee Ena Wolf, who detailed in his referee's report that player Cristian Lanzarote, sporting director Jaume Nogues and Pique himself all confronted him.

"Once the match had concluded, in the dressing room tunnel, Mr. Cristian Lanzarote Abenoza addressed my Assistant Referee No. 1 in the following terms: 'You are the worst assistant in the category,' repeating said expression up to five times. Immediately afterward, while I was heading toward the referees' locker room while still in the tunnel, the Sporting Director of FC Andorra, Mr. Jaume Nogués, addressed me in the following terms: 'You brought him to us on purpose despite [us] writing a letter to the federation,' "Scoundrels!'

"At that same moment, Mr. Gerard Piqué Bernabéu addressed me by shouting in a threatening manner, pursuing me within a few centimeters of my face and along the tunnel to the entrance of the referees' locker room, protesting and raising objections regarding my performance. Just upon entering the locker room, Mr. Gerard Piqué Bernabéu shouted the following: 'Now, if you want, put that in the match report!'

"Once we left the locker room and heading to the parking lot with the security forces of Andorra present at all times, Mr. Gerard Piqué and Mr. Jaume Nogués turned to us continuously protesting against refereeing decisions that occurred in the match. In addition, Gerard Piqué said: 'Go out escorted they will not attack you.' And he also said to the party's reporting delegate: 'Ultimately, Mr. Gerard Piqué said to the Informating Delegate: 'In another country they would blow you up but here in Andorra we are a civilized country.'

The confrontation at the Albacete game comes one month after a similar incident after a fixture versus Malaga in which Pique got up close and personal with the officials, again.

He approached the assistant referee, shouting and pointing at him with his index finger a few centimeters from his face, using the term: "It's a historic robbery" and "I'm going to upload it on Twitter."

Pique responds to Albacete controversy

Pique says that the reason he and Andorra are furious is that they wrote to the National Committee of Referees (CTA) requesting that Ena Wolf not be allocated to any of their remaining matches this season as, in the opinion of the club, he is not up to standard and holds a grudge against Andorra.

"We asked the CTA a month ago for Ena Wolf not to referee any more FC Andorra matches. He's a referee who doesn't have the level and it's clear he has a personal issue against our club," he said, as quoted by El Partidazo de COPE.

"Each club pays more than 470,000 euros annually so that the Segunda Division has more than 20 referees for the category. How is it possible for a referee who recently officiated both teams to be assigned again in such a short time, after our request by letter?

"Coincidences don't exist. He's issued four red cards for 'protesting' with alarming ease... it's a disgrace. That said, reports and fines are never in short supply."

A two-year ban was apparently on the table previously, but he has instead been suspended for two months for "notorious and public acts that undermine sporting dignity and decorum, based on the facts recorded in the referee's report".

Pique was also given a separate six-match ban "for acts involving minor violence toward the referees". Club president Ferran Vilaseca was issued a four-month suspension, while the sporting director Jaume Nogues was also banned.