“Between all of us, we have saved the club”

“Between all of us, we have saved the club. It has cost a lot to get here, it has suffered a lot. But it has been saved”. Joan Laportathe president of Barça, has recognized that “the levers are exceptional measures in exceptional moments”, but they were essential to get the entity out of the “hole” in which it was after “the bad inheritance” received from the directive of Josep Maria Bartomeu. This is how it was directed laporta to the 687 delegates who began by following (10:30 in the morning) the Assembly by telematic means of the 4,451 members summoned. At 12 noon, there were already 919.

In his institutional message, which lasted half an hour, the president stressed that “Barça is still not fixed because the inheritance was very bad and they have had to cover up with courage, cunning, talent and knowledge”. In that sense, he has indicated that he “is aware” that the club cannot live by activating levers, so it needs to “consolidate” through ordinary resources.

? @JoanLaportaFCB: “Between tots and totes we have saved the Club” ?❤ pic.twitter.com/TDHQARbEFS

– FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona_cat) October 9, 2022

Laporta barely read the papers he had on the stand. He looked directly at the camera, thus addressing the delegates electronically in the third consecutive assembly in which this method of communication is used. “The club was practically in collapse, defaults with banks, creditors, even with the club’s statutes, so its viability was in danger,” he specified.

In that sense, the president has revealed that they had three paths. The first was “to be very conservative”, which could, in his opinion, lead Barça to “sporting and economic disaster”. The second way “was to ask the member for money, but you are not guilty of the previous mismanagement”, so they chose the third way because the club had, as Eduard Romeu, economic vice-president, said, “a debt of 1,350 million euros “.

“It was to roll up our sleeves, work, generate enthusiasm and design a strategic plan to achieve sporting excellence and build an increasingly competitive team, always maintaining the ownership and governance model of the club”. A model that, according to Laporta, guarantees that Barça “will always belong to its partners”.

? @JoanLaportaFCB: “The levers have shown that Barça is alive, we have a great capacity to attract capital and to generate income. And most importantly, without losing independence with respect to our governance model and ownership model” pic.twitter.com/ypPclYb1mp

— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona_es) October 9, 2022

From “transition to consolidation”

Then, the president acknowledged that the 21-22 season was one of “transition for economic, sporting and institutional stability, forced to stop everything with intensive cures” because, as Eduard Romeu, economic vice president, later stressed, “the legacy was much more poisoned than we thought. After these cures, Barça seeks, according to Laporta, “to lay the foundations for the recovery of the sporting leadership that it should have in the world through responsible management.”

For this reason, they decided to activate the levers, which were defined by Laporta “as operations that optimize our resources”, which have allowed not only to collect almost 800 million euros but also to build a powerful team. “The levers have shown that Barça is alive, that it has an enormous capacity to attract capital and generate income without losing our ownership model.”

? @JoanLaportaFCB: “The levers are exceptional measures, at exceptional times. Today, with the ratification of the levers, we send a message that Barça is owned by its members, and we are the ones who decide the present and the future of Barça” pic.twitter.com/NvCUJGEvxQ

— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona_es) October 9, 2022

Speech similar to that of Florentino

The club, according to the president, “has recovered its pulse”, but that does not mean that it can continue like this. “We cannot function based on levers.” Just at that moment, Laporta wanted to go to the current context of European football in a speech that has related to the one that Florentino Pérez, the president of Madrid, launched last week at the white club’s assembly of delegates.

“The financial situation of the clubs in Europe is very worrying because we assume all the costs and risks. It can be seen in attendance, in television audiences and in the difficulty of football in attracting new groups, such as young people, who are seduced by other forms of entertainment”, he said, defending the same arguments as Florentine, while telematic attendance at the assembly grew, with 823 delegates (11:00 a.m.), as specified Joseph Cubells, secretary and spokesperson of the board. An hour later it was 919.

Eduard Romeu, Vice President of the Economic Area, explained the transfer of audiovisual rights and the liquidation of the financial year 2021/22 pic.twitter.com/7XUcnoSoEW

– FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona_cat) October 9, 2022

There is, however, a substantial change in the way of approaching the Super League, a project that Barça fully endorses. “There is the distortion of the state clubs, which have unlimited resources, with financial doping. We firmly support the Super League, which will provide solutions, with a more even competition. The Super League will be an open League, based on meritocracy, we will work in a competition format that is to everyone’s liking”, stated Laporta.

He also wanted to be more specific. “It makes me laugh that the state clubs say that the rich clubs are in the Super League,” said the leader, maintaining that this project is essential. “Without the Super League we will not advance. With it, the clubs will govern our own destiny.”

Later, the leader recounted the process of the four levers activated by his directive. “We have activated some exceptional levers while the Super League is not running, because we have to move forward”, Laporta recalled regarding the sale of 10% of the television rights to Sixth Street for 25 years, with a repurchase option, that ” It represents an income of 267 million euros”.

But with this first lever it was not enough. “We decided to sell another 25% of the rights also to Sixth Street, with 400 million euros (667 in total). But the League led us to activate the third lever, because it did not consider it enough. Koundé was yet to be registered and the board had to guarantee 10 million euros personally. The board and also Mateu Alemany participated in the operation”, revealed the president of Barça, indicating that “we ended up selling 49% of Barça Studios to Socios.Com and Orpheus Media. We are especially satisfied with This has allowed us to register all the signings and have a competitive squad”.

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The president of Barça finished his speech with a forceful message to scare away the possibility of becoming SAD (Sociedad Anónima Deportiva) as is insinuated from some sectors. “We don’t have a state or a tycoon behind us, nor do we want it. Neither do those who want to protect Barça from a distance and those who want Barça to do badly. And we send them a message that Barça is owned by the partners, who decide the present and the future of the club. Thank you and Visca el Barça!”.