Barcelona ‘technically bankrupt’ in March, says CEO

BARCELONA: Barcelona chief executive Ferran Reverter said on Wednesday the club was “technically bankrupt” when Joan Laporta took over as president in March, and would have been “dissolved” if it was a public limited company.

The Spanish giant’s financial woes were laid bare in August when they were forced to allow Lionel Messi to join Paris Saint-Germain after admitting they could no longer afford to keep the six-time world player of the year.

The new board inherited debts of €1.35 billion (RM6.51 billion) and a bloated first-team payroll as Laporta returned for a second spell as president following the resignation of Josep Maria Bartomeu.

“If the club had been a PLC (public limited company) it would have been dissolved,” Reverter revealed during a news conference in which he outlined the results of an audit carried out by accountancy group Deloitte.

“In March 2021, we were in a situation of technical bankruptcy, but as a sports association we were able to refinance the debt,” explained Reverter, revealing the club had “difficulties in paying salaries” due to “almost zero cash flow.”

To tide the club over in the short term, officials took out a temporary loan of €80 million “to cover the treasury obligations for a period of 90 days“, and refinanced a debt of €595 million.

Barcelona have confirmed losses of €481 million for last season, which was even higher than the club anticipated.

According to Reverter, the audit, which studied the club’s finances from 2018/19 until March 2021, showed there had been “serious administrative deficiencies” and that directors “bought players by being disconnected from reality.”

Yet despite the club’s financial struggles, Barca hope to finish this season with a profit of €5 million.