Portuguese Football Federation closes investigation into referee council chief Luciano Gonçalves

Portuguese Football Federation Luciano Gonçalves disciplinary investigation referee appointments Duarte Gomes

The Conselho de Justiça (Council of Justice) of the Federação Portuguesa de Futebol (Portuguese Football Federation) announced on 24 July that it is archiving the disciplinary inquiry into Luciano Gonçalves, president of the Arbitration Council, due to insufficient evidence of any infraction.

The inquiry, launched on 1 July after a complaint by former national arbitration director Duarte Gomes, examined allegations that Gonçalves had interfered with referee appointments, including an alleged WhatsApp message to referee Hélder Malheiro about a forthcoming I Liga match. The final report concluded that there were no sufficient indications that Gonçalves transmitted information or influenced referee selections.

Following Gomes's resignation, João Ferreira succeeded him as director, and the federation referred the matter to the public prosecutor for further review.