Barcelona will sell the title rights to their renowned stadium for one year in an effort to raise money for the fight against coronavirus.
The Spanish club’s executive board said on Tuesday they will donate the entire fee raised by selling the title rights of Camp Nou – the biggest stadium in Europe with more than 99,000 seats. It has never had a sponsor since it opened in 1957.
"We want to send a universal message: for the first time someone will have the opportunity to put their name on Camp Nou and the revenues will go to all of humanity, not just Barca," club vice president Jordi Cardoner told the Associated Press.
“The initiative arose in an emergency situation. We think that we have to have a very quick response, putting our crown jewel at the service of the fight.”
The club had planned to wait to sell the stadium’s title rights for the first time in the 2023-24 season. At that time, the club hoped to bring in € 300 million (Dh1.1billion) paid up front for a 25-year contract to pay for renovations.
Cardoner, who has recovered after contracting the virus, said the board came up with the charity sale plan independent of the long-term deal. However, he said that if a sponsor wanted to include it in the long-term deal, the club would consider it.
Cardoner said Barcelona wants to listen to offers from companies and private foundations and will consider opening it up to a group of interested sponsors who could team up and hopefully provide even more funds to help in the fight against the pandemic.
He did not give any estimate on how much the foundation hopes to earn from this “one-shot” sale. But given the greatness of Lionel Messi and the millions of spectators who tune in each week to watch Barcelona’s games, Camp Nou is one of the most coveted venues in sports.
“Camp Nou is sending out an S.O.S.,” Cardoner said. “We are open to everything. We want to maximise the economic participation and to ensure that the partners share our same social values.”
