<p>The electronic structure of fullerene C₆₀, both in its neutral and ionized state, is investigated taking into account the strong intrasite Coulomb interaction. The energy spectrum of the C₆₀ and C₆₀⁺ systems is calculated in the static fluctuation approximation for the Hubbard model. The optical absorption spectrum is constructed relying on the calculated energy spectrum using the Kubo formula. The optical absorption spectrum curves of C₆₀ coincide with the experimental curves on the good qualitative level. However, the optical absorption spectrum of C₆₀⁺ does not coincide with the experimental data. The reasons for this discrepancy and the effects that lead to it are discussed.</p>