Lisbon’s long-running Football Leaks saga has taken another turn after Portugal’s government cancelled the decision to remove Rui Pinto from the country’s protected-witness programme. Pinto, whose document releases exposed confidential dealings across European football, said only a week ago that he was moving into hiding because he feared for his life.
The Ministry of Justice said the protection arrangements already in place will continue until the Commission for Special Security Programmes reaches a new ruling. Justice Minister Rita Alarcão Júdice met the commission on Thursday to review Pinto’s case, before Friday’s announcement that the earlier process could not stand.
Authorities concluded that Pinto had not been properly informed of the decision to end his protection. They also found that he had not been given the necessary information or a lawful opportunity to challenge the move. As a result, the commission voided both its original decision of 22 September 2026 and the subsequent procedure and notification issued on 30 September.
Pinto must now receive a fresh notification, as well as access to the risk-assessment report and relevant records from the commission’s meetings. He will have 10 working days to submit his position. Only after that period, and after considering any response he makes, will the commission decide whether the special security programme will remain in force or be closed.
A leak that travelled across Europe
On 2 October, Pinto wrote on X that he was leaving for an undisclosed location after being told that the Portuguese witness-protection body intended to end his participation in the scheme and withdraw police protection. His message followed years in which Football Leaks placed him at the centre of one of the most consequential disclosures in modern European club football.
The leak began in 2015 and involved a vast collection of private documents relating to player contracts, transfers and financial arrangements involving clubs, footballers and agents. Its consequences spread beyond Portugal, prompting investigations in several countries and bringing scrutiny to prominent sides across the continent, including Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City, the latter facing more than 100 alleged financial-rule breaches.
Pinto’s own legal record remains part of the story. In Portugal, he received a four-year suspended prison sentence in 2023 for offences involving unlawful access to emails and computer systems, as well as attempted extortion. France imposed a separate six-month suspended sentence that same year for illegally accessing PSG emails. In 2026, however, he was acquitted in another Football Leaks-related case in which he had faced 241 charges.
