Laporta: "Sala as president would be an honour"

Barcelona president Joan Laporta gave in July an interview to Catalan newspaper Avuí and talked about which board member could succeed him in next year's presidential elections.


You want to impose a successor.
I don't like to impose, I like to convince.

Xavier Sala.
I would want that he who succeeds me maintains the same ideology, and that his personality and his knowledge give relevance to the presidency of Barça. Someone who is recognized in his professional life. There are several people like that in the board.

With colourful jackets you cannot be the president of Barça.
It would be an honour for Barça to have a professor at Columbia university as president. That's the spirit that makes us great.

Related posts:
Sala i Martin: "I'm not too smart to be president"
Cartoon: Laporta putting successor in trouble


interview: salvador sostres

The Rosell Project - Part 3: The Board (1)

In June 2008, former Barcelona sports vice-president Sandro Rosell announced at a press conference that he would take part in the next presidential elections. Last month, he confirmed in an interview with Catalan radio station Ràdio Barcelona that nothing had changed since that announcement.

Despite the fact that Rosell reportedly decided not to start campaigning before the end of this year (and maybe not even before the elections are called), he would be close to finishing his program. Several media have in the past weeks reported on his project. This blog will give an overview of what has been published so far.


Several names have already been put forward as possible board members. On Tuesday 6 October, Catalan television channel TV3 revealed ten names of people (Rosell included) who would be part of the next Barcelona board of directors if Sandro Rosell would be chosen as president.

Asked about the story, one of the people mentioned, Carles Vilarrubí, confirmed in an interview with Catalan radio station RAC 1 that this list was correct: "It's true that I am part of the project of Sandro Rosell. And the names that have been put forward are the correct ones."


Former board members who left the club in 2005, at or around the same time as Rosell:

- Josep Maria Bartomeu, would become sports vice-president.

- Jordi Moix, would become the director responsible for the assets administration.

- Xavier Faus, would become economic vice-president.

- Jordi Monés, would become the director responsible for the medical services.


New board members:

- Ramón Pont, chairman of the Borges Group, producers of, among other things, several varieties of olive oil.

- Jordi Cardoner Casaus, the grandson of the popular former Barcelona vice-president (for over 20 years) Nicolau Casaus. Cardoner, who last month confirmed he is part of Rosell's project during an interview with Catalan radio station Catalunya Ràdio, was reportedly wanted by several presidential candidates. He would become the director responsible for the social area, possibly as vice-president.

- Manel Arroyo, managing director of Dorna Sports, an international sports management and marketing company, that is among other things the exclusive holder of all commercial and television rights of the MotoGP World Championship since 1992.

- Carles Vilarrubí, financial entrepreneur involved in telecom, media, hotels and investment banking, vice-chairman of the Rothschild Bank Spain and president of the Jumping Owner's Club of the FEI, the international governing body of equestrian sports.

- Javier Bordas, hospitality and entertainment enterpreneur, chief executive of the Costa Este Group, among other things owner of the Sotavento Beach Club and the Opium Mar night club in Barcelona.


this is the third part of a four-parts series. the next and last part will cover the people who are rumoured to possibly also be part of rosell's board. you can read the whole series here.


Read the previous parts of this series:
The Rosell Project - Part 1: The Club
The Rosell Project - Part 2: The Team

Josep Maria Bartomeu

Jordi Moix

Xavier Faus

Jordi Monés

Ramón Pont

Jordi Cardoner Casaus, with his grandfather Nicolau Casaus
(copyright picture: jordi cardoner casaus)

Manel Arroyo

Carles Vilarrubí

Javier Bordas

sources for this series:
el mundo deportivo, sport, el 9 esportiu, as, gol, pelikano, britcorner, intereconomía tv, tv3, rac 1, ràdio barcelona, radio marca, catalunya ràdio and own research

Barcelona wants to sign Cesc before elections

Catalan sports paper El Mundo Deportivo claims that Barcelona wants to sign Arsenal midfielder and Spanish international Cesc Fàbregas (22) before next year's elections.

To avoid that one of the presidential candidates could use the signing of Cesc during the election campaign (read more here), Barcelona president Joan Laporta reportedly wants to launch a final offensive for the Catalan midfielder from January on.

Laporta and Barcelona sports director Txiki Begiristain would already have reached a principal agreement with Darren Dein, the agent of Cesc, last August. Despite the rather positive attitude of board members of the English Premier League club, a summer transfer was in the end vetoed by Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger.

Read more:
Agusti Benedito to run for president
The Rosell Project - Part 2: The Team

Rosell worried about 'rich kid' image

Catalan sports weekly paper Gol reports that "Crackòvia", a popular sketch comedy program on Catalan television channel TV3 (watch a sample below), is preparing the introduction of Barcelona presidential candidate Sandro Rosell as a character in one of the upcoming shows.

Catalan newspaper El Periódico meanwhile claims that Rosell would be worried about how the program might portray him. People from the entourage of the Catalan business man reportedly contacted the people in charge of "Crackòvia" to ask them not to portray Rosell too much as a rich kid.

Read more:
The Rosell Project

picture:
Sandro Rosell with college students of the University of Navarra - in the north of Spain - during the anniversary of a residence hall on 23 March 2009.

video by crackòvia
english subtitles by totalbarca

Pre-candidates need to collect signatures

To be allowed to take part in the presidential elections of FC Barcelona, pre-candidates will have to prove they have at least a minimum of backing by the fans by collecting the signatures of a determined number of club members. This is one of the measures to avoid that there would be too many candidates.

The first paragraph of Article 42.3 (titled Support of the club members to the candidacies) of FC Barcelona's by-laws reads as follows: "To obtain the [approval] by the Electoral Board, the candidacies have to be proposed by a number of club members that is not less than fifty per cent (50%) of the delegates that are part of the [General] Assembly."

Catalan sports paper Sport reported last week that 4.190 delegates were summoned for the club's last General Assembly in August of this year, which means that to be a candidate for the presidency of FC Barcelona, one will have to collect at least 2.095 signatures of club members.

Several media had claimed before that close to 5.000 signatures would be needed due to the growth of the number of club members, but this seemed to have been based on a wrong interpretation of the club's by-laws and a confusion with the number of signatures needed for a vote of non-confidence.

The actual number is nevertheless still considerably higher than the number of signatures requested in the elections of 2003 (little more than 1.500) and 2006 (1.804).


picture:
Barcelona president Joan Laporta, flanked by directors (from left to right) Xavier Cambra, Marc Ingla and Rafael Yuste, on his way to present the signatures needed to take part in the 2006 elections. Laporta's candidacy was that year the only one that was able to collect the requested number of signatures.

Cartoon 13: Laporta putting successor in trouble

Being the heir of Laporta won't be easy with all the trash that is being dumped lately...

And despite maybe being a good heir, I might already have drown before the elections.

(click the cartoon to enlarge)


by caye

source:
sport.es

see more election cartoons here

The Rosell Project - Part 2: The Team

In June 2008, former Barcelona sports vice-president Sandro Rosell announced at a press conference that he would take part in the next presidential elections. Last month, he confirmed in an interview with Catalan radio station Ràdio Barcelona that nothing had changed since that announcement.

Despite the fact that Rosell reportedly decided not to start campaigning before the end of this year (and maybe not even before the elections are called), he would be close to finishing his program. Several media have in the past weeks reported on his project. This blog will give an overview of what has been published so far.


Guardiola
Rosell fully supports the working methods and ideas of Barcelona manager Josep Guardiola, who will stay on as Barcelona manager if he wishes so. Guardiola will be given more decision power, for example regarding the transfers and the youth academy, and would become a 'British-style' manager.

Sports director
The position of sports director will disappear in the new club structure, which would mean that current Barcelona sports director Txiki Begiristain will have to leave the club.

Incoming transfers
Rosell will start working on the transfers during the first months of next year. The transfer operations will also depend on the financial situation of the club, on which Rosell has some doubts (read more here).

Cesc
Although several media have claimed that Rosell would already have an agreement with Arsenal midfielder and former Barcelona youth player Cesc Fàbregas (22), both the player (in public) and Rosell (in private) have denied there would be a deal.

Robinho
If Guardiola wishes to sign Manchester City winger Robinho (25) next summer, Rosell would be confident the deal can be done. As former Nike executive in Brazil, Rosell still follows the local market closely and has good contacts in the South-American country.

Puyol
Barcelona captain Carles Puyol (31) is seen as a club icon and will therefore be offered to become part of the club's coaching staff once his career has ended. This would not be linked to Puyol's upcoming decision to renew his expiring contract or to leave the club next summer.

African youth players
Rosell wants to focus more on African players and therefore wants to develop and open youth academies on that continent.

this is the second part of a four-parts series. the next part will cover the people who could be part of rosell's board. you can read the whole series here.


Read the first part of this series:
The Rosell Project - Part 1: The Club


sources for this series:
el mundo deportivo, sport, el 9 esportiu, as, gol, pelikano, britcorner, intereconomía tv, tv3, rac 1, ràdio barcelona, radio marca and own research

Sala i Martin: "I'm not too smart to be president"

Barcelona board member Xavier Sala i Martín gave last month an interview to Catalan newspaper Avuí.




With those colourful jackets you cannot be the president of Barça.
The soci of Barcelona is too smart to chose a president and a project only based upon the colour of a jacket.

But there are limits.
Please! I won't disguise myself as a priest. I follow the classic rule: shirt and jacket.

You are too smart to be the president of Barça.
"Too smart" is something that doesn't exist. Barça has the historic challenge of changing from a local circus into a global brand like Disney. We're a factory of dreams with the world following the art created by our team with the ball. To make this happen, we need to be among the 5 or 10 football firms who in the coming years will survive the challenge of the globalization. We have to decide if we want to be Betis or Disney. And to take up this big challenge, no one is "too smart".

We're just about business.
No. We are dreams, we are feelings.

You know a lot about economy but not about Barça.
From a very early age, I went to see the games with the season's ticket I got from my uncle. In 1979, I was at the final of the Europen Cup Winner's cup in Basel and one of my tresors is my club member's card of that season signed by Charly Rexach.

Later you gave up being a soci.
In 1985, I went to study in the United States and as I didn't have a lot of money, I didn't pay anymore for my card. I lived from a scholarship and I couldn't afford to spend a lot.

We almost feel sorry for you.
I followed the final of the European Cup in Sevilla from there, through one of those short-wave radios. Now, luckily, when I'm in Manhattan, I can see the games live while listening to Catalunya Ràdio.

Being the president of Barça is that important that you would leave Manhattan?
It's easy to travel by plane these days. If Núñez didn't stop selling apartments, I don't think I should stop giving classes.


Read more:
Who will be the next president of FC Barcelona?


interview: salvador sostres

Poll Result: Political Laporta influences referees?

Do you think that the political involvement of Laporta can have an influence on the refereeing during Barça games?

Yes 72%
No 28%

total votes: 8103
start date poll: 16 october 2009
source: el mundo deportivo

check more election poll results here

Cartoon 12: Laporta's legacy will dominate elections

* Overview of the main candidacies for the upcoming elections *


original laportism

mini laportism

laportism without laporta

continuity laportism

laportism light

coloured laportism

official laportism

power-point laportism

political laportism

(click the cartoon to enlarge)


by kap

source:
el mundo deportivo

check more election cartoons here

Barcagate taboo in the dressing room

Catalan sports paper Sport claims that "Barcagate" - the story on the investigation by the club of four vice-presidents - has not been discussed inside the Barcelona dressing-room. None of the players, not even the team captains who are following the news about the club more closely, would have brought up the subject.

When the presumed scandal was made public in the press, Barcelona manager Josep Guardiola reportedly gave his players some advice about how to deal with the media reports on the case. The coach didn't want the issue to be used as an excuse for a drop in performances.

Upon his arrival as Barcelona manager last year, the Catalan would already have put in place several measures to shield the squad from the outside pressure and to keep the players focused on their daily work and on football matters. Newspapers would for example be forbidden in the dressing room.

With the presidential elections coming up in the spring of next year, Guardiola is aware that he will have to keep an even closer eye on the matter to avoid that the non-sporting issues would have an influence on the players and the team's performances.

read this blog's ten-parts series on the Barcagate story here

Related posts:
Cartoon: Guardiola cleaning up club image
Poll Result: People try to destabilize the club?

The Rosell Project - Part 1: The Club

In June 2008, former Barcelona sports vice-president Sandro Rosell announced at a press conference that he would take part in the next presidential elections. Last month, he confirmed in an interview with Catalan radio station Ràdio Barcelona that nothing had changed since that announcement.

It is believed that Rosell started preparing his candidacy shortly after he resigned as Barcelona director in June 2005. Rosell would at this moment be working with a group of close to 100 people to organize his campaign. During monthly meetings with his closest entourage, the election program is being finalized.

On Thursday 1 October, Rosell met with 30 club members - Catalan delegates of the advisory council - at the La Camarga restaurant in Barcelona to explain them his project and to listen to their wishes. Two days later, after the league match against Almería on Saturday 3 October, Rosell met with delegates of the advisory council from outside Catalonia in his campaign offices. During both meetings, Rosell would have made a good impression on the fans.

Despite the fact that Rosell reportedly decided not to start campaigning before the end of this year (and maybe not even before the elections are called), he would be close to finishing his program. Several media have in the past weeks reported on his project. This blog will give an overview of what has been published so far.


Financial situation
Rosell wants to control the books of the club because he thinks they don't reflect the real situation of the club. There would be more debts than have been been made public.

Economic austerity
Rosell wants to reduce the spending of the club. One of the concrete measures would be to withdraw all credit cards that are being used by club directors and high executives. The number of employees will be limited, as well as their salary and some of their privileges.

Code of ethics
Members of the board will have to cumply with an ethical code in order to maintain the good name of the club.

Senate of Dignitaries
An assembly of distinguished club members will be created, with the core being the oldest socis. This assembly would be another means to safeguard the reputation of the club.

Dismissals
The contract of Barcelona chief executive Joan Oliver would be put to an end. One source claimed that also Barcelona head of external relations Manel Estiarte could have to leave the club, although people from the entourage of Rosell have reportedly denied this.

Political stands
Rosell will eliminate all political elements from his election program. He doesn't want the club to take radical positions regarding Catalan independency and wants to focus on sporting matters.

this is the first part of a four-parts series. the next part will cover the plans of rosell regarding the team (the coaching staff and the players). you can read the whole series here.


Read more:
Who will be the next president of FC Barcelona?


sources for this series:
el mundo deportivo, el 9 esportiu, pelikano, gol, intereconomía tv, tv3, rac 1, ràdio barcelona and own research

Poll Result: People try to destabilize the club?

Do you believe, like Laporta said when talking about "Barcagate",
that people are trying to destabilize the club?

Yes 57%
No 43%

total votes: 6342
start date poll: 11 october 2009
source: sport