La Liga Club Sporting Gijón Must Pay Tax Authorities $8.5M By Friday

La Liga side Sporting Gijón faces a week in which it has to bring itself up to date with the Spanish tax authorities, to which it has to pay €7.7M ($8.5M) of expired debt by Friday, according to MARCA. Sporting's administrative council said that it will "make the payment on time thanks to a credit negotiated directly" by club VP Javier Fernández. Once the club pays this quantity, it will receive a certificate from the tax authorities that the Spanish Football League (LFP) requires from all La Liga and second division clubs. These debts and delays in payments "caused a sanction from the LFP prohibiting the club from signing players last season" and harsh restrictions this season, both on how many signings it can make -- a maximum of three -- and how much it can spend (MARCA, 7/27).