Barcelona is at war with La Liga. Laporta prepares another lever. Will he eventually sell the club’s TV?

Barcelona’s complicated financial situation makes it difficult for Gavi to register for the team and sign a new contract. According to the club, La Liga unfairly limits his room for manoeuvre. The Catalan big club’s main objective now is to reduce wages, but there is also the idea of moving to further leverage.

Barcelona still can’t register Gavi on the A-League roster and give him a new contract. LaLiga regulations make it impossible. The club planned this event after the departures of Gerard Piqué and Memphis Depay. “According to Article 101 of the Financial Fair Play Regulations, LaLiga does not allow the registration of new contracts in the middle of the season if it calculates that the club will exceed the salary cap in the coming season, even if it has the financial resources at the time.”

LaLiga president Javier Tebas believes that Barça will again exceed the cap in July, therefore not making it easier for the Catalan club to register the 18-year-old midfielder. The Blaugranas admit that LaLiga is applying the current rules correctly, although they claim they have previously turned a blind eye to similar situations regarding new contracts.

Barcelona should have no problem releasing enough funds to register Gavi and his new contract in the summer. Given that they are currently above the financial fair play threshold. They are currently in a situation where for every €4 million they want to spend on wages, they have to release €10 million, either through new revenue or through player sales.

The Catalans openly admit that they are at war with La Liga. At this point, in addition to the dispute over Gavi’s registration, there is also an open lawsuit that Barça has filed against La Liga to use 15% of the €600 million loaned to the club by investment banking firm Goldman Sachs in the summer of 2021 to increase wages.

Barcelona is complaining that the 38 Primera and Segunda División clubs that have signed with CVC can use the 15% loan the US fund has made to all signatories to register players. Barça sees no other solution for its situation than a reduction in wage costs of between 150 and 200 million euros.

Therefore, the only way to make room in the salary cap is to cut the wages that are plaguing their budget. Currently, the total wage bill is 656 million. However, in order to meet all requirements, they should be in the range of 450 to 500 million euros.

La Liga already warned a few weeks ago that the leverage is over. Extraordinary revenues from asset sales will no longer raise the salary cap. With one caveat, if the assets sold generate losses. One example of such an asset is Barça TV. The club will regain management of its media channel this June after eight years from Telefónica.

Some club sources admit that one option is to sell it. Each year the club spends €6 million on Barça TV. The proceeds from the sale of Barça TV – in whole or in part – would have a direct impact on the salary cap for next season. For context, it should be added that Barça TV workers are on strike. A few weeks ago they announced that they would strike at every Barcelona match unless Telefónica significantly improved their wages and working conditions.

And indeed they have. On the occasion of matches against Real Madrid (15 January), Ceuta (19 January) or, more recently, Real Sociedad (25 January), Barça TV did not broadcast any studio or match programme, as is usually the case. Barça TV staff also invited Joan Laporta to attend the meeting.

Source: Twitter, FCBarca