Joan Laporta: 'Barça's strength has been shown'
After Barça's victory in the Spanish Super Cup, the Club’s president, Joan Laporta, appeared in a press conference at the Ciutat Esportiva Joan Gamper to discuss details of the process involving the registration of Dani Olmo and Pau Víctor and the events of the last few weeks. On 8 January, just hours before the team’s Spanis Super Cup semi-final against Athletic Club in Saudi Arabia, the Higher Sports Council (Consejo Superior de Deportes, CSD) agreed to an injunction to allow the players Dani Olmo and Pau Víctor to be registered and to play for Barça as normal.
On his return to Barcelona, and still joyful after the team’s victory over Real Madrid, the president began his appearance by commenting on the CSD’s decision and the Club’s financial situation: “The events of the last few weeks reaffirm Barça’s strength and go against the apocalyptic tales put forward in certain areas due to a lack of knowledge or bad faith. Right now, the Club stand within the 1:1 ratio regarding financial fair play. That allows us to sign players in the normal fashion, no longer under the league’s constraints.” This financial outlook, according to Joan Laporta, guarantees the “Club’s ability to register players as normal.”
This situation is complemented by the building of the new Spotify Camp Nou. According to the president, “the new culer home will a great source of income in the years to come, a stadium which we hope to return to as soon as we can.” Indeed, out on the field at the new ground, the fans will see a team with a very promising future ahead of them. Joan Laporta praised the first team, admitting “the culers are enjoying a competitive team with a lot of home-grown young players mixed with great talent that make up a committed squad led by an exceptional coach.”
Hard work and reward
The objectives achieved in recent days, according to the president, have come about due to hard work. “From the beginning we have followed a very detailed strategic plan that we have assessed constantly,” he explained. To execute it he admitted that it required “talent, intelligence, audacity and also love for Barça.” The last element has been vital to combat “the suffering of all the directors, executives and employees involved who have not given up and have had to fight against everything and everyone.”
Joan Laporta believes the obstacles placed in the way are no accident as he explained that his has happened during the Club’s long history: “If we look back at Barça’s history when it was emerging, certain figures with their media support join forces to create a disgraceful story that has nothing to do with reality. That has been repeated continuously. I am happy to see they have not won.”
The president also thanked the fans and members for their support: “Almost everybody has understood that the obstacles have been attacks to damage the Club and its badge. No campaign will ever discredit Barça, a club loved by millions of people.” The gratitude came after the president showed himself to be against the attitude of the opposition, who according to Joan Laporta, have had a golden opportunity to show their love for Barça but have positioned themselves on the side of those who wished to harm the club.
Agreement with Nike and the VIP seats
The two most important factors that led the CSD to grant FC Barcelona a provisional reprieve were the contract with Nike and the sale of rights to the VIP seats at the new Spotify Camp Nou. Laporta emphasised that the contract with the sportswear company "is the best we could achieve" and that the delay in reaching an agreement was solely "to improve the terms that were already under negotiation." Unfortunately, the governing bodies only accounted for part of the income from the contract, so another business opportunity was immediately addressed, namely the exploitation of the VIP seats.
This is a deal that, according to the president, "would have eventually been made in the future, but it was finalised now because La Liga imposed additional requirements after the club had submitted all the necessary documentation before the end of the year." To explain the details of the operation, financial director Manel del Rio also spoke at the press conference, saying that "the product is not an invention by the club, but rather a reinterpretation of a business model that is already operating in the United States. It involves creating a licence that allows investors to exploit this type of seating. Barça therefore receives a set annual income."