Barcelona President Joan Laporta has defended his handling of their new Nike sponsorship deal, and the decision to sell the rights to commercialise 475 VIP seats to investors in Qatar and the UAE. The two deals were undertaken with a view to allowing the club to register Dani Olmo and Pau Victor, but Laporta claims that they would have happened all the same.
Laporta explained that Barcelona delayed signing the Nike deal in the summer in order to secure a better deal, and said that the American sportswear brand gave up an extra €300m just months later.
“We were hoping to sign Olmo with a contract with Nike. During this period, Christensen unfortunately got injured. La Liga confirmed this and we took advantage of the situation to sign him. Thanks to Nike, we have a robust treasury that no one else has. We didn’t sign with Nike in the summer because we could have improved it, which is what happened.”
“We’re talking about €300m difference. Now, we will earn three times what we were earning with the previous contract. When Ter Stegen got injured, the legal department interpreted that the savings on his salary would allow us to sign Dani Olmo and Pau Víctor. We fought for it but they didn’t accept our claims. Then we continued with Nike and La Liga, approved by the assembly.”
Having explained the timeline leading to Dani Olmo and Pau Victor being unregistered on the first of January, Laporta also went into more detail on the VIP seats that have been sold in order to get the club back within their salary limit, and without additional spending restrictions on what they bring in.
“La Liga considered that the contract with Nike was not a new one, so we considered that we could appeal as with Gavi, but the court did not agree with us. So we activated a new product, which we have been working on since February 2024, such as the commercialisation of VIP seats. We have given away 475 and we have a part left. It is very attractive for investors. We have found two investors to achieve fair play.”
He confirmed that the VIP seats deal was worth around €100m, and explained that origin of the investors, but did not reveal their names.
“The operation would have gone ahead regardless of the salary limit. We are very pleased to create a new product. Barca will receive €300m and, in addition, €100m for the right to commercialise these seats. They manage the seats with the risk and benefit involved. We have not invented it, the product is working in the USA. We have adapted it to Barca, which is more beneficial than what is offered by American funds under other conditions that did not impact fair play.”
Following his impressive performance in the Spanish Super Cup, Alejandro Balde is making a strong case for a return to the Spain national team. @xavierbosch
— barcacentre (@barcacentre) January 14, 2025
“We have adapted it to enter into fair play. There is an investor from Qatar, who invested €30m for the investment accredited by La Liga. The other comes from the United Arab Emirates, €70m. The €40m had to be accredited and it did not arrive until the 31st of December because the bank transfer did not arrive. The rule does not say that the money has to be accredited, but La Liga demanded it. Part of it could not be credited until the 3rd, but everything was presented in time and form.”
Laporta has in the past been accused of mortgaging Barcelona’s future with contracts that sell future assets, impacting their income down the line. The Blaugrana President has defended that accusation by citing the ‘critical’ financial situation at the club when he returned to power.
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