Barça out of the Champions League in 2024 ?

Barça could be excluded from the next Champions League because of the club’s serious financial difficulties. This threat is feared within the Catalan club itself.

With the Super League project recently making headlines in the football world, initiated mainly by Spanish giants Real Madrid and FC Barcelona, UEFA could be considering severe sanctions.

Unlike Real Madrid, FC Barcelona are facing significant financial difficulties, which are hampering their activity in the transfer market. Since the arrival of Joan Laporta, the club has adopted various strategies, such as the partial sale of assets, to generate income.

Barça out of next season’s Champions League?

However, according to reports in the German newspaper Welt Am Sonntag, Barcelona could face serious exclusion from the next Champions League. The possible sanction would stem from an alleged breach of UEFA’s financial regulations, with the Blaugrana failing to offset their expenditure with equivalent income over the last three years.

Although the club announced a net profit of €304 million in September, UEFA’s regulations only take into account football-related sales. Barça has included in its balance sheet the sale of future TV and marketing rights, as well as profits from other sports sections (basketball, handball, etc.), which would not comply with UEFA standards.

Welt Am Sonntag reports that UEFA is discussing internally a possible exclusion “for two to three years”, stressing that “the greater the loss, the greater the penalty”. This summer, the European football body had already fined the Catalan club €500,000 for incorrectly declaring profits from the sale of irrelevant intangible assets.

Sources inside Barça have also confirmed the risk of exclusion from the Champions League. Without the prospect of taking part in the competition over the next few years, Barcelona would face increased economic difficulties, which explains their insistence on the Super League project.

Barça to play Napoli in the Champions League

While waiting to find out the outcome of the situation, the Blaugrana are turning their attention to Napoli in the Champions League. The Catalans will face the Italians in the last 16 of the Champions League. The first leg is scheduled for 9pm on 21 February at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, followed by the second leg on 12 March at 9pm at the Stadio Olimpico de Montjuic. Barcelona finished top of their group ahead of Porto, Shakhtar Donetsk and Royal Antwerp, marking their return to the last 16 after a two-season absence.

At a press conference before the match against Almeria, Xavi spoke about the Champions League draw. Having qualified for the last 16 for the first time since the 2020-2021 season, the Catalan club now face the reigning Italian champions. According to the Catalan club’s coach, the match promises to be “very difficult”, with a Neapolitan side that has become more defensive since the arrival of Walter Mazzarri.

Deco was also in Nyon to share his thoughts with Sport. “They’re Italian champions, and it’s going to be a tough game. We’re in the Champions League, they’re the champions, and they have top-class players (…) Football is everyday life. The most important thing is that we consolidate, that we manage to play well more often. There are still a lot of things to do before this match, and we’ll think about them when the time comes. Right now, we need to keep picking up points in La Liga. We’ve just been champions. In football, there are good times and bad times, but we’re working and things are bound to get better,” he stressed.