Barcelona is one of the best clubs in history. The Catalan club has numerous fans worldwide. Now there are rumors that Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has expressed interest in buying this Barcelona. He is ready to offer €10 billion to buy the Catalan club.
Barcelona is currently going through a major financial crisis. The club’s debt is over €2.5 billion. Taking advantage of this fragile financial situation, the Saudi Crown Prince is showing interest in investing huge sums. Analysts see it as part of Saudi Arabia’s ‘Sports Diplomacy’ or Sportswashing strategy. Earlier, the Public Investment Fund (PIF) made large investments in various sports including football.
But no matter how tempting this offer of €10 billion is, selling Barcelona is practically impossible. Because Barcelona is not a privately owned company; It is a fully Socio or member-owned club. Important decisions of the club are made by the votes of thousands of members. Traditionally they would not agree to hand over full control of the club to a foreign individual or organisation.
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According to football and economic analysts, while Saudi Arabia can’t take full ownership of the club, it could invest in Barcelona’s commercial sector. In that case, the PIF could invest money but they would have no hand in controlling the club’s core board of directors or the football on the field.
As a result, the Saudi Crown Prince’s purchase of Barcelona is still considered more of a rumor than a fact. However, the news has sparked renewed debate over debt-ridden Barcelona and the future investment structure of European football.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia’s football expansion has already reached unprecedented levels. Mohammed bin Salman has already invested a lot of money in the football arena. Barcelona-The amount of money proposed for the project is in line with their Vision 2030 strategy.
