Real Madrid president Florentino Perez and FC Barcelona have been summoned to a conciliation hearing in Madrid on 25 November after Barcelona took legal action over comments he made about the club and refereeing.
The hearing could precede criminal proceedings for defamation against Perez, according to sources close to the case who spoke on Monday.
Barcelona began the legal process on 12 June, following remarks made by Perez at a news conference in May. The Real Madrid president accused the Catalan club of manoeuvring to receive favourable treatment from referees.
The club said it wanted Perez to withdraw comments it considered knowingly false, defamatory and harmful to its image and reputation. Barcelona added that it would bring a criminal complaint if the conciliation process did not resolve the dispute.
The case is linked to the so-called Negreira case, which concerns payments made by Barcelona to companies connected to Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira, a former vice-president of Spain's refereeing committee.
Spanish courts are investigating payments of up to 7 million euros made over almost two decades. The inquiry is examining whether the money was intended to secure a competitive advantage.
Barcelona denies any wrongdoing. It has said the payments were for reports about referees, while a court dismissed bribery charges against the club in 2024.
Perez addressed the matter at a press conference on 12 May, describing it as "the most serious case of corruption in football".
He added: "We could never have imagined Barcelona giving money to the head of the referees."
The Real Madrid president also claimed his club had been deprived of league titles as a result of the affair.
"I've won seven leagues. I could have won twice as many. The others were stolen from me," he said.
The 25 November appearance is a conciliation hearing, rather than a criminal trial. The process gives the parties an opportunity to settle the dispute before Barcelona decides whether to pursue the threatened criminal complaint.