Man, “also” we should not be if we go to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, but the truth is that we have new sponsorship. Yeah, An agreement that has raised eyebrows, some alarmist holder, and that inevitable cloud of Rasta and flute moralism that always appears if it is also signed with the presence of Loewe ties. I accept it, the RDC is not precisely Luxembourg, but perhaps that is why the agreement has much more value than it appears.
We are not talking about an operation with an opaque multinational or with cryptocurrencies sponsored by the cousin of a sheikh. We are talking about a real country, with real people, who needs visibility and opportunities to get out of the hole to which those who govern them. Barça, with this firm, earns money with which to oxygenate to continue breathing (what a good fault), and strategically positions itself in a young continent, football to the core and connected as never before. Putting a foot in the country of Bandundu I Kananga, today, is to sow Barça brand in a population of almost 105 million people with an average age of 16 years, and that is not charity, it is a vision. And there is more. This agreement, if it is managed with sensitivity and cunning (I do not know if they will have planned), it can become a true transformation engine, and for once, we can impose not only our game, but our values.
Barça can and should demand that sponsorship come accompanied by social work, inclusion programs, equality, fight against child exploitation, and what is more revolutionary, must become the first sports contract with ethical clauses in history. Is there reputational risk? All. Can the agreement outrak in a progressive gathering in Nou Barris and be incomprehensible in another, Pija, of the Bonanova? Sure.
It is not ideal to associate with a country that has more complaints of Amnesty International than FIFA points, but let’s be honest: when did Barça leave walking down the wire? Now we are going to tear our clothes because the partner is African and with structural problems? Man, no. This time, if done well, the business can be more encouraging than many of those recently established … So, yes: acnur in the ass and the Congo in the chest. I know, it’s weird, uncomfortable and full of contradictions. But it is one of those wonderful paradoxes of modern football and could end up being one of the most consistent things that the club has made in years. Please. Do it well.