Laporta Speaks Out. Barcelona’s Camp Nou Return Delayed
FC Barcelona, complete with an advertising campaign including Joan Laporta, had set August 10 as the return date for the Spotify Camp Nou, coinciding with the Joan Gamper Trophy. However, a week ago, the club itself announced that the return had to be postponed due to not having obtained the first occupancy license from the Barcelona City Council.
“We had information that the corresponding licenses would arrive on time. In fact, the building license and the activity license arrived, but the first occupancy license did not,” said club president Joan Laporta in an interview with Mundo Deportivo regarding the suspension. “In my speech at the Barcelonista Senate, I said that if there were no unforeseen circumstances, we would return for the Gamper. We will return to the Spotify Camp Nou as soon as possible. Now, as always, we are working hand-in-hand with the City Council to overcome all obstacles. There is no reproach to the City Council. We respect and abide by what they have decided, and our technicians are pushing to return as soon as possible.”
Laporta doesn’t believe setting a date was a mistake, as “if you don’t set dates, you don’t create tension either.”
The next date to consider is the weekend of July 13-14, when Barça will play their first home match against Valencia. “It’s July 23, and we still have time for construction; work is progressing at a very good pace, and we’ll see how everything is and that the City Council finally gives us the first occupancy license,” explained the Blaugrana president, who doesn’t want to consider a return to Montjuïc. “We are basically focused on the return to the Spotify Camp Nou. There are alternatives, but these are contingencies we are not considering right now. We are focused on the return to the Spotify Camp Nou.” Laporta also explained that Barça has asked UEFA to play their first Champions League match away from home.
Laporta was emphatic about the possibility of playing a third full season at the Olímpic Lluís Companys: “We are not considering the possibility of not returning to the Spotify Camp Nou. All the budgets we have made for next season and all the commitments we have based on the financing contract are contingent on returning to the Spotify Camp Nou. We would have to redo everything. It would make no sense from a financial and economic point of view to do one more season in Montjuïc, especially when the Spotify Camp Nou is very advanced.”
The Blaugrana president, who justifies not claiming the agreed-upon compensation from Limak by stating that the delays cannot be attributed to the Turkish company, ended with a wish: that the inauguration of the Spotify Camp Nou be a tribute to Leo Messi. “The most beautiful thing would be to inaugurate the new Spotify Camp Nou with a tribute to Leo Messi. I am sure the family has heard about it; it has even been discussed, and it is something we would be delighted to do. It also depends on Leo and his family. I hope so. It would be very beautiful,” he concluded.
