As if nothing has happened, Dani Olmo and Pau Víctor have been traveling with the FC Barcelona selection since the turn of the year. The two summer signings will also be present on Wednesday evening in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, at the meeting between Barcelona and Athletic Club from Bilbao in the semi-final of the Spanish Super Cup.
They are fit and have their football gear with them. The only problem: the two have not been eligible to play since January 1. Because Barcelona would not comply with the salary ceiling applicable in Spain, the Spanish Football Association RFEF and La Liga competition management debarred Olmo and Víctor from participating in the second half of the season. This angered Barcelona, which is now doing everything it can to reverse that decision.
The football soap is followed hour by hour by Spanish media. Most of the attention goes to Dani Olmo. The 26-year-old attacking midfielder with Catalan roots went through La Masia, Barcelona’s youth academy, but moved abroad at a young age. Via Dinamo Zagreb and RB Leipzig, Olmo played for the Spanish national team, with which he became European champion last summer.
In August, Olmo was brought back to Catalonia from Leipzig for 55 million euros. The transfer fee and the associated salary – reportedly more than 9 million euros per season – immediately came under criticism from Barcelona president Joan Laporta. After all, one applies in Spain ‘financial fair playsystem with a salary ceiling. Could Laporta’s club, which already had to make significant cuts to its salary, sign such a big earner according to the rules?
“No,” was the initial decision of the RFEF and La Liga football association. Only due to a long-term injury to Andreas Christensen, Barcelona was exceptionally allowed to register Olmo and Víctor for the first half of the season. Important condition: it must be demonstrated by December 31 at the latest that there was enough money to still comply with the rules.
No plan
Dani Olmo emerged as a permanent fixture in German coach Hansi Flick’s team, with six goals and an assist in 15 games. But as the New Year’s Day deadline approached, no financial plan was put in place from Barcelona that would allow Olmo and Víctor to be eligible to play for the second half of the season. At the eleventh hour, the club presented a solution: it wanted to sell 470 VIP seats in the new stadium to wealthy parties in the Gulf States for a period of thirty years.
But because Barcelona could not provide the sales papers for the VIP seats until January 3, the association and La Liga were unrelenting: Barcelona complied, but was three days late. Olmo and Víctor had already been deregistered. Barcelona have strongly opposed this decision in recent days. For example, on Tuesday the club asked the High Sports Council (CSD), an autonomous part within the Spanish Ministry of Sports, whether it could not temporarily register the players.
The situation seemed hopeless, but due to an unexpected turn of events, there is now hope for the Catalans: the CSD ruled on Wednesday evening that the two could participate with a provisional registration pending a more extensive procedure – although Wednesday’s match in Jeddah came too early.
From Unicef to Spotify
The situation with Olmo and Víctor is exemplary of the financial policy under Barcelona president Joan Laporta. “He is a very charming man. An optimist, a real salesman,” said journalist Simon Kuper, who lives and works in Barcelona and spoke to Laporta for the book The Empire that he wrote about the club. “He conveys in everything: ‘it will be fine, trust me, I will arrange it’. But what he doesn’t have is a long-term vision for his plans.”
What Kuper is referring to is the rapid pace at which the ‘brand’ Barcelona has been put on display by Laporta and his predecessors. In his first period as president (2003-2010), Laporta prepared the conservative base in Barcelona for the unthinkable: a shirt sponsor. This started symbolically with the Unicef logo, but now music streaming platform Spotify appears on the blue-red shirt. The renovated stadium will also be called the Spotify Camp Nou when it opens next year.
Laporta also supports the controversial idea of starting his own mega competition. With this Super League, a handful of top European clubs could earn billions.
Several times in recent years, Laporta has mortgaged the club’s future successes. For example, an American investor paid around 665 million euros in 2022 to obtain a quarter of Barcelona’s TV revenues for the next 25 years.
Increasing pressure
Thanks to a policy that now capitalizes on future profits, top players such as Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha and Dani Olmo have been attracted in recent years. But in twenty years, when these players are no longer active at the highest level, the Barcelona board will still feel the consequences of Laporta’s decisions.
The Olmo case is the final straw for many members of Barcelona, which is governed as an association. Their anger is now focused on Laporta. Because weren’t the warnings clear at the start of the season? Why didn’t the president act sooner? Several member collectives threatened this week with a vote of no confidence.
It should become clear before too long whether Pau Víctor and Dani Olmo will be allowed to finally finish the season. There is also a lot at stake for the players themselves. If Olmo is not allowed to play later, he would be allowed to leave on a free transfer according to a clause in his contract. This would mean a financial loss of tens of millions for Barcelona.