Prime Minister Valls may not hold much actual sway in deciding whether the Catalan titans come to France, but he’s sure to aid the cause after professing his love for all things Blaugrana.
Advertisement
He cited the example of AS Monaco-a club which comes under the jurisdiction of the independent principality rather than France-as a blueprint for Barcelona‘s possible participation in France’s Ligue 1. He also doubted whether Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu, who has tried to avoid becoming directly involved in the debate over Catalan independence, would want the club to play in a different league.
Prime Minister of France Manuel Valls has suggested Barcelona could play in Ligue 1 should Catalonia become independent from Spain. Valls told Journal du Dimanche.
“I’m a huge football fan, a Barca fan. This is connected to my family, the French know it, they speak to me about it in the street”. With star players Forbes, Barcelona are worth $3.16 billion, making them the world’s second most valuable football team in the world behind arch-rivals Real Madrid.
However, the bosses of the Spanish league say that if Catalonia does achieve independence, it will have to find somewhere else to play.
Chief executive of La Liga, Javier Tebas, warned the Barcelona board that independence from Spain would force the league to omit the current champions from the league.
Spanish football has a lot to lose if Barcelona do end up leaving its ranks in search of alternative playing means, given their reputation as one of the sport’s biggest consistent draws.
Advertisement
On October 22, FC Barcelona announced it had made a record turnover of €608 million (US$672 million), helped by winning the UEFA Champions League last season.
