Barca look outside Spain

> Bartomeu considers prospect of Barcelona future if Catalonia gains independence

BARCELONA and its members would have to decide which football league to play in if Catalonia gained independence from Spain, club president Josep Maria Bartomeu said yesterday.

The Catalan club played behind closed doors at the Nou Camp on Sunday, beating Las Palmas 3-0 in La Liga, as a protest against Spain using force to prevent voters taking part in a banned referendum to decide the region’s fate.

More than 840 people needed medical attention after riot police clashed with some of those attempting to participate in the controversial vote on secession, which the Spanish government had ruled illegal.

“In the case of independence, the club and the members would have to decide in which league we would play,” Bartomeu (pix) told reporters after a board meeting.

“We are going through difficult and complicated moments and with respect to what could happen in the future we will take it on with calm and wisdom.”

Catalan sports minister Gerard Figueras last week said Barcelona may be able to play in another country should the region achieve independence from Spain.

“In the case of independence, Catalan teams in La Liga’s ‘Barcelona, Espanyol and Girona’ will have to decide where they want to play: in the Spanish league or a neighbouring country like Italy, France or the (English) Premier League,” he said.

Bartomeu also said he had accepted the resignations of Barcelona vice-president Carles Vilarrubi and director Jordi Mones, who opposed the decision to play behind closed doors.

Bartomeu said choosing to play without fans was one of the hardest decisions he has had to make as the club’s president, since taking over from Sandro Rosell in January 2014.

“We very seriously considered the option of postponing the game, but we could not get the Professional Football League (LFP) to approve our request,” he added referring to the national body that runs La Liga.

Barcelona, Espanyol and Girona all announced yesterday that they would be joining a region-wide general strike in Catalonia following the weekend’s events. – Reuters