Barcelona is one of the 12 founders of the Super League, but new chairman Joan Laporta has not always been positive about the tournament in recent months. While campaigning in the run-up to the March 7 presidential election, Laporta said, among other things, that the Super League is a “sensation of everything wrong with football.” Now, however, his club has signed the statement confirming the establishment and Laporta is silent for the time being.
In December, Laporta said in conversation with La Vanguardia that Barcelona could use the income from the Super League to pay off debts. The club currently has approximately 1.2 billion euros in debt. “We are very concerned about that. But we are also optimistic, because we also experienced something like this in 2003. We can get out of this,” assured Laporta. “There are solutions, like the option of a European Super League, that we can get a lot of income from. And when you consider other business opportunities in the market, there is cause for optimism.” Against Cadena COPE he said that same month that “a lot would have to happen” before he would be convinced of the competition.
Video: Here’s what Joan Laporta had to say about the European Super League back in January.
“I think the European Super League represents everything that is wrong with football. It’s all about the money, you lose the essence of the beautiful sport.” Https://t.co/QOYZUnkkQC
– Barça Universal (@BarcaUniversal) April 18, 2021
In an interview with The Guardian Also from December, Laporta also hit a critical note on the Super League. “Every proposal will be considered and decisions will be made based on the interests of Barcelona and football. But such projects have often been tried without success. I think it can ruin football, the essence of it. ” In January, Laporta said it was open to the Super League, but added that the project has ‘downsides’. “It would be a closed competition for the first three years, but there are plans to work with promotion and relegation afterwards. I believe there are eighteen teams that would receive EUR 800 million. The national competitions would lose their appeal. ” Laporta wanted “a detailed explanation” before taking a stand. In the meantime, the income per club seems to be a lot lower: the Super League reported a starting capital of 3.5 billion euros, which is divided among the founders.
Until then, Laporta had not taken a firm stance, but that changed when he gave an interview in January Cadena COPE. “I am not in favor of the European Super League. There are other ways to generate income than this tournament, which would disrupt the sport, ”he noted at the time. “I see the European Super League as a sensation of everything that is wrong with football. It’s all about money. The essence of the beautiful sport is lost. What I would like to see is a Super World Cup for club teams, comparable to the World Cup for countries. Every two years, maybe. ”
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It is important to know that Laporta explicitly opposed his predecessor Josep Maria Bartomeu in the campaign, who announced on his departure in October that the club had said ‘yes’ to the Super League. “I can announce extraordinary news,” said Bartomeu who was dropping off. “The board of directors has approved the requirements to participate in a future European Super League, a project promoted by the major clubs in Europe.” Laporta could have tried to change course and during the campaign gave the impression with his statements that he wanted to do so. But reality turns out to be different for now, now that he has been elected.
Of the approximately 1.2 billion euros in debt, 730 million euros must be repaid in the short term, it reported Marca in January. During the campaign, Laporta came up with a different plan than his opponents to pay that short-term debt. He wants to issue bonds to supporters and investors. Barcelona must repay those bondholders with interest within five years, is the idea. However, this could increase long-term debt. Laporta probably sees the income from the Super League as an excellent opportunity to prevent the debt from becoming unaffordable.