Barcelona President Joan Laporta, while speaking at the “Foros de Vanguardia” event, has been reflecting on the identity of Spain’s two biggest football teams.
“Real Madrid represents power, and Barça represents freedom,” he said, after describing what it feels like to attend matches in the Bernabéu’s VIP box.
“I don’t know whether deals are made in the Bernabéu box. There is power there. Here, it’s a different story, we stand more for democracy and freedom. My relationship with Florentino Pérez is proper and cordial,” he noted, with a hint of coldness.
Laporta was afterwards asked whether Barcelona could follow the path Real Madrid is considering, after Florentino Pérez presented the option of selling 5% of the club during the latest Assembly.
“At Barça, we are not contemplating anything of the sort. I’ve spent four years hearing that we would become a corporation. We are the guarantors that Barcelona will always belong to its members. It is an added value and connects us with our community,” insisted Laporta.
With this in mind, the president of Barcelona emphasized that “the investors secured by Goldman Sachs for the stadium actually appreciated the fact that we are not a corporation. We have created a financial structure that avoids mortgages. Becoming a corporation isn’t even on our minds. It would harm us greatly because it goes against our very essence. There are people who do not fully understand what Barça represents,” he said
