Lawyer Fran Soto, partner at Garrigues law firm, is the new head of arbitrators.

Rafael Louzán is revolutionizing Spanish arbitration. The president of the Spanish Federation announced this Wednesday that the new head of the Technical Committee of Arbitrators (CTA) is lawyer Francisco Soto Balirac, a partner at the Garrigues law firm and a professor at the University of Vigo.

This 45-year-old lawyer is an expert in tax law and was the Vigo delegate of the Galician Committee of Arbitrators. Soto replaces Luis Medina Cantalejo , whose dismissal was announced a week ago along with the majority of his team, after serving as president of the arbitrators since the end of 2021, following the departure of Carlos Velasco Carballo .

According to the RFEF, "The changes at the top of the CTA respond to the need to open a new era in the field of refereeing, in line with the work carried out by the system reform group, which includes representatives from the refereeing community, professional clubs, and the RFEF itself."

Fran Soto defined himself this Wednesday as a fan of football and refereeing. "The level of Spanish refereeing is among the best in the world. I want to thank the RFEF for the trust they have placed in me. I want to thank the directors who have left; they have done commendable work, and it is worth highlighting it."

In addition to Medina Cantalejo (head of the Technical Committee of Referees) and Clos Gómez (head of VAR), there were other dismissals. Most of those who are alongside those mentioned will also be leaving for a new structure. They are the deputy president, Antonio Rubinos Pérez ; the vice presidents Vicente Lizondo Cortés, Bernardino González Vázquez, and José Luis Lesma López ; and the director of the VAR project, Carlos Clos Gómez .

Soto advocated leaving behind "possible controversies that may have arisen from the past," such as the Real Madrid TV videos against referees or the Negreira case , which is being investigated judicially.

"This is not the time to enter into controversy. I ask for empathy and trust, and we will ensure that the refereeing community is where it should be. It's not worth getting into issues that contribute nothing. We will leave behind all the potential controversies that may have arisen from the past. I am convinced that the future will be better for everyone," he said, when specifically questioned about the Real Madrid TV videos, reports Efe.

In his presentation, Soto expressed his intention for the CTA to be "open to clubs" and also avoided commenting on the Negreira case . "I don't even know Negreira. For me, it's a case of the past; we're going to work for the future, we're going to work, to build. After that commission where all the stakeholders were present, it doesn't make much sense to dwell on a case that's already in court. I'm going to try to create, build, add, and put a semi-specific situation behind us. In a new era, it doesn't make sense to talk about what isn't desirable," he said.

Soto assured that the CTA will be open to clubs, but he did not currently support referees speaking after matches. " I think it's putting someone on the spot after a match . I think referees have to protect themselves. When society accepts that referees are just like any other athlete, and that it's a form of respect, we can move forward as we see if there's that empathy," he said.

"For five months, we've done things that have never been done here. We must trust in this new model. There are issues that are somewhat restricted, because that's what the law establishes. I'm not interested in appointing a CTA president. I think Fran's dual role as an executive and someone familiar with the arbitration world deserves a degree of trust. He's made a very difficult decision in his life. He's 45 years old, his career prospects were already secured, and he's taken on the challenge," Louzán said.