The return of FC Barcelona to Spotify Camp Nou looks very uncertain for the second half of the season. Although the construction has been progressing well in recent weeks, there is still much to be done and the deadlines to have the Estadi ready for the Champions knockout rounds (the club must notify UEFA of its venue by the end of January) are too tight. In this regard, the president of the Chamber of Contractors of Catalonia, Lluís Moreno, pointed out another obstacle that the club must resolve before returning to Les Corts.
In an interview for the program ‘Què t’hi jugues’, on the ‘SER’ network, Moreno referred to the necessary licenses to reopen the Estadi with a capacity of around 65,000 spectators, which usually take several months (between 4 and 6) to process. “The one who grants the license has a responsibility that can be penal; it is an event activity license where 60,000 people must be accommodated under all conditions,” the official began to say.
In this sense, he added: “This involves, apart from the City Council, the Firefighters, the Police, the mobility system of Barcelona, Civil Protection, and also the insurance companies that will insure the value of the stadium,” warned the president of the entity that groups all the construction companies operating in Catalonia. Furthermore, Moreno issued a rather discouraging forecast about the date when Barça could return to Camp Nou.
Barça could postpone the return to Camp Nou until September 2025
“There were six or seven very solvent and expert companies in building stadiums in Catalonia, Spain, and abroad that, for two years, were studying the project to make a good offer. And they themselves said that it was impossible to meet the deadlines that Barça requested. As things stand now, it would barely be possible to play the Gamper,” pointed out the representative of the Chamber of Contractors.
If the return to Les Corts is ruled out for the second half of the 2024/25 season, the club will have to finish the season in Montjuïc. For the Champions, moreover, another venue would need to be sought, as the Lluís Companys will only be available until the end of April and UEFA does not allow venue changes starting from the ‘play-off’ phase, the first of the four two-legged eliminations of the new format. And, for the start of the 2025/26 season, the club may request to play the first three matchdays of La Liga as visitors to allow more time for the construction work that will extend until the summer of 2026.