The Extremaduran Government dismisses Santiago Amaro as Director General of Sports

The Governing Council of Extremadura has ordered the dismissal of Santiago Amaro Barril as Director General of Sports of the Department of Culture, Tourism and Sports. The decision is formalized through Decree 168/2026, of September 29, published in the Official Gazette of Extremadura (DOE) number 189, of September 30, 2026, with the official reference 2026040212. The decree itself establishes that the dismissal shall take effect on the same day of its publication in the regional bulletin.

The regulation is issued at the proposal of the Minister of Culture, Tourism and Sports, Laureano León Rodríguez, and following deliberation by the Governing Council in its session on September 29, 2026. The text is based on articles 23.o) and 36.g) of Law 1/2002, of February 28, on the Government and Administration of the Autonomous Community of Extremadura. The decree, signed in Mérida on September 29, 2026, by the Minister and by the President of the Junta de Extremadura, María Guardiola Martín, expressly thanks the dismissed official for the services rendered.

A dismissal with immediate effect

Decree 168/2026 is limited to a single provision: the dismissal of Santiago Amaro Barril as head of the Directorate General of Sports, without the text including the appointment of a successor. The publication in DOE number 189, of September 30, 2026, thus completes the procedure, as the regulation enters into force on the same day of its insertion in the bulletin.

The formal elements of the decree are as follows:

• Issuing body: Governing Council of the Junta de Extremadura.
• At the proposal of: Minister of Culture, Tourism and Sports.
• Date of the decree: September 29, 2026.
• Publication: DOE no. 189, of September 30, 2026, section II, “Authorities and Personnel”.
• Official reference: 2026040212.
• Effects: the same day of its publication.

Activity of the position until dismissal

The last action signed by Santiago Amaro Barril as Director General of Sports appearing in the bulletin is the Resolution of July 28, 2026, by which the Disciplinary Regime Regulations of the Extremadura Motorcycling Federation were approved, its registration in the General Registry of Sports Entities of Extremadura was ordered, and its publication in DOE number 156, of August 13, 2026, with reference 2026062123.

In that resolution, the director general acted under article 12.1 of Decree 27/1998, of March 17, on Extremaduran Sports Federations, and article 7.g) of Law 2/1995, of April 6, on Sports of Extremadura, a regulation that attributes to the Department the approval of federative statutes and regulations.

The framework of the Department and the sports area

The General Directorate of Sports is one of the governing bodies of the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Sports, a department created by the Presidential Decree 11/2026, of April 29, which assigned it competencies in heritage and cultural promotion, tourism and sports. Its organic structure was established by Decree 111/2026, of May 26, subsequently modified by Decree 161/2026, of September 9, which reinforced the General Secretariat and created a European funds control unit.

In the same edition of the DOE number 189, the Inter-administrative Agreement between the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Sports, the Provincial Council of Badajoz and the Provincial Council of Cáceres for the development of the Sports Dynamization Program 2026-2029 (IX phase) is published, signed on August 20, 2026, with reference 2026062434. The program, created in 1997, runs from January 1, 2026, to December 31, 2029, and finances the sports dynamizers and coordinators of the Extremaduran associations of municipalities.

The cessation leaves vacant the general directorate responsible for executing the regional sports policy, from grassroots sports and sports schools to the Extremaduran Sports Games (JUDEX) and the Extremaduran Special Sports Games (JEDES), as well as the oversight of the Extremaduran sports federations. The decree does not anticipate who will assume these competencies nor whether the replacement will be published in a future edition of the bulletin.

Source: Official Gazette of Extremadura (DOE), no. 189, of September 30, 2026, section II “Authorities and Personnel”, 1. Appointments, situations and incidents (official reference: 2026040212).