This Saturday, the Ordinary Assembly of FC Barcelona is held electronically. The 4,331 delegate members are invited to this meeting of the club’s supreme governing body. On the table, among other issues, is the financial year of the 2023-24 season, which has closed with 91 million euros in losses, although with 12 million in ordinary profit.
During the course of the four ordinary telematic meetings of FC Barcelona held in the years 2022 and 2023, of the 4,451 members called, 906 people attended the first, 681 in the second, 656 in the third and a maximum of 462 members in the last . When the meeting started, as explained by the secretary of the board Josep Cubells, there were 561 delegates connected. When President Joan Laporta’s report began, there were 807 accredited. At the time of the first vote there were 927 members connected. A record number since they became telematic.
The numbers of the Barça Vision board
It was, without a doubt, the most important and cumbersome vote on the agenda and the one that required more explanations since the club presented losses of 91 million euros as a result of the non-payment of the 141 million that were not collected in the sale of the Barça Vision lever. The positive ordinary result was also valued at 12 million partly due to the 81 million in sales of soccer players. This point of the day was resolved with 452 votes in favor, 156 votes against and 25 blank votes. Despite having 927 members connected, 293 did not vote, could not or did not know how to do so.
2023-2024 academic year
Voting: 927 members. 293 did not vote
Votes in favor: 452
Votes against:156
Blank votes: 25
Despite having 927 members connected, 293 did not vote, could not or did not know how to do so
Previously, treasurer Ferran Olivé reviewed how these 91 million losses were generated in the company Barça Vision, the business area based on digital assets such as NFTs or the metaverse valued at 408 million euros. Barcelona has been carrying pending accounts with this lever since 2022, when the assembly approved the sale of 49%. “LaLiga approved these numbers and Barça sold Orpheus Media, Jaume Roures’ company, and Socios.com 24.5% of Barça Vision to each company for 200 million. Only 10 of each partner joined, and one year after the agreement was fulfilled, they indicated that they could not assume said participation,” Olivé acknowledged.
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Barcelona found in Vestigia, a Cypriot fund that contributed 20 million, and in Libero the partners who were supposed to cover the remaining 180 million. But the Germans did not honor the agreement. “And we couldn’t afford to waste any more time. That is why we have decided not to postpone pending payments and we have provisioned for non-payments,” said Olivé, referring to the 91 million debt. “Aramark appeared this summer. He has an important job at the club. It is the stadium’s current hospitality and catering services provider. Now they want to open digital companies in the world and they want to enter Barça’s digital business,” said Olivé of Aramark, who this summer became a shareholder contributing 25 million. 15 to cover Libero’s non-payments and another 10 million to be returned to Orpheus Media. In total, of the 200 million that it had to earn for that asset, the club only obtained about 55 million.
The value of this company is the expectation that shareholders have. That is what differentiates our criteria from that of the auditor.”
This data has caused Grant Thornton, the auditor in charge of reviewing the accounts this year, to consider that the losses for the year should be greater than 91 million. The audit warns that the business plan has not been met and that, therefore, “the valuation” of 408 million should not be maintained. “In addition, the club has not provided a new assessment considering these facts,” he adds. And he concludes: “For all these reasons, we consider that there are clear signs of deterioration that we have not been able to quantify objectively,” he noted in his report. “The value of this company is the expectation that shareholders have. That is what differentiates us from the auditor’s criteria. When new partners enter soon this situation will be reversed,” Olivé responded.
The ordinary business
Beyond Barça Vision, the treasurer wanted to emphasize the ordinary positive result of 12 million. “We come from seven years with negative ordinary results. “We had gone into debt,” he said. He also recognized that this ordinary result is positive, in part, due to the 81 million earned from the departures of Dembélé, Kessié, Nico, Abde, Chadi Riad and Marc Guiu for a value of 81 million. “Not all the young people we train can end up in the first team. You have to know how to get rid of them at the right time,” he insisted.
Not all the young people we train can end up in the first team. “You have to know how to get rid of them at the right time.”
Olivé pointed out that, within this ordinary management, the sports management has achieved a reduction of 170 million euros in sports wage bill, which has gone from 676 million to 505 million. This reduction once again places the club within the ratios recommended by UEFA. A salary bill based on a contract model with sporting merits related to the titles that they intend to maintain this year. Looking ahead to next year, the entity has budgeted 22 million euros in transfers that have already been carried out. They are those of the sales of Julián Araújo, to Bournemouth for 10 million, and of Mika Faye, to Rennes for 10.3 million. They also contemplate that the salaries of young people like Lamine Yamal or Pau Cubarsí will be revised upwards.
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Regarding the net debt, according to the LFP criteria, the Blaugrana is 560 million, not counting the financing of Espai Barça (1,450 million) by Goldman Sachs. The board considers that the return to the Spotify Camp Nou will solve many of the entity’s economic problems, which will earn 350 million a year when the work is complete in 2026. As the reopening will take place with 60% of the capacity, the forecast of income in that phase is 154 million. “Espai Barça pays for itself,” Olivé insisted.
The budget for the 2024-2025 academic year
Secondly, the delegates will vote on the budget for the 2024-25 academic year. Income will be 893 million euros, one less than last year. Expenses will amount to 873 million. If these accounts are fulfilled, five million net benefits will be generated. With the return to the Spotify Camp Nou with 60% of the capacity, the club predicts income of 154 million.
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