Sepp Blatter Comments on Potential Real Madrid and Atletico Transfer Bans

Outbound FIFA President Sepp Blatter has confirmed Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid will be handed identical transfer bans to Barcelona in 2016 if found guilty of the same offence.

A transfer embargo has prevented Barca from registering any new players in 2015 due to the signing of underage players, and Blatter told Spanish daily El Mundo Deportivo Real and Atletico should be treated the same (h/t AS):

"These are closed investigations, and I can’t even set foot inside FIFA, but if Barça faced sanctions for breaking FIFA rules and the two Madrid clubs committed identical infractions, then it’s normal practice that they would face similar sanctions."

There's sure to be little debate that any club found guilty of breaking transfer law should be subject to equal punishment, but the ongoing FIFA investigations surrounding Real and Atleti mean verdicts are yet to be reached.

Speculation first emerged around Real at the end of last season, and the club was swift in denying any wrongdoing regarding their acquisition of youth players, releasing a statement in April, per ESPN FC:

"The reports are absolutely false, as born witness to by the Spanish Federation itself having denied to different media outlets that Real Madrid is involved in any irregularity in the signing of underage players."

Spencer Owen of KICK TV mused that a one-year transfer embargo for two of La Liga's biggest clubs could upset their success in European competition. Barcelona (2015) and Real (2014) have claimed the last two Champions League titles:

A more recent report from Spanish newspaper AS claimed Real had partnered with a company called Soxna to sign 25 Chinese players under the age of 14, but the club again denied any such deal (h/t ESPN FC).

It was in November that Newstalk writer Robbie Dunne suggested Atletico were closing the gap on Real and Barca during the latter's 2015 ban, but that progress could be derailed if they suffer the same sanction:

One could argue Atletico are at bigger risk of suffering than Real in the face of a 2016 transfer ban, considering they've grown accustomed to selling some of their most prized assets. Real will feel more confident of retaining their elite stars.

Radamel Falcao, Diego Costa, Arda Turan, Thibaut Courtois and Toby Alderweireld are just some of the players Los Rojiblancos have had to replace after selling to Europe's big-spending outfits.

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Suspended Blatter is coming to the end of his term as FIFA president, but the Swiss figurehead speaks some sense in acknowledging the desire to see teams handed identical bans if their infringement is the same.

Meanwhile, Barcelona are less than a fortnight away from the end of their 2015 embargo, and it would surely appease the Catalan giants to see their two main La Liga rivals handed a difficult start to 2016.