The highly indebted FC Barcelona borrows 1.45 billion for its new stadium
Aging: The Camp Nou in Barcelona is to be extensively renovated within three years
Source: dpa/Arne Dedert
FC Barcelona has billions in debt, but needs money to rebuild its stadium, which is in dire need of renovation. Several investors should now deliver this. The deal for “the best stadium in the world” goes beyond all dimensions.
Dhe FC Barcelona has secured the money for the conversion of its stadium, which is in dire need of renovation. The Spanish football club announced that a loan volume totaling EUR 1.45 billion had been agreed with a total of 20 investors, including banks such as JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs.
This amount corresponds to the expected total costs. At a general meeting in December 2021, expenditure of a maximum of 1.5 billion euros to modernize the Camp Nou was approved. “It will be the best stadium in the world, in the best city in the world, in the best country in the world,” said club president Joan Laporta at the time of the announcement.
The conversion is scheduled to begin on June 1st and will be carried out by the Turkish construction company Limak. The work is expected to take about three years and be completed by June 2026. The audience capacity will then increase from 99,000 to 105,000.
Barcelona President Joan Laporta is pushing ahead with the stadium renovation
What: Getty Images/David Ramos
According to the plans, the team around national goalkeeper Marc-André ter Stegen should play their home games at least in the first half of the 2023/2024 season at the Lluís Companys Olympic Stadium due to the renovation. This stadium was the central venue for the 1992 Summer Games and only holds around 55,000 spectators.
Barcelona are expecting gigantic additional income
Barça has a horrendous debt of 1.35 billion euros. With the “Espai Barça” (“Barça Square”) project, which includes the conversion of the Camp Nou and the entire surrounding club complex, including the Palau Blaugrana sports hall, the club wants to earn up to 250 million euros more per year in the future.
Some of the loans are to be repaid with this money. The Catalans’ stadium is now called Spotify Camp Nou in full after signing a “strategic partnership” agreement with music streaming leader Spotify.