Features

Opening date set for first Espai Barça project

Spanish LaLiga football club Barcelona has set August 27 as the opening date for the first new facility developed under its Espai Barça masterplan.

An opening ceremony will be held for Estadi Johan Cruyff, with activities set to include a match between the Under-19 teams of Barcelona and Dutch Eredivisie club Ajax, the two clubs for whom the legendary footballer both played and coached.

On August 26, Barcelona will unveil a statue of Cruyff on the esplanade of the main grandstand of the Camp Nou.

Designed by the Batlle i Roig Arquitectes studio, Estadi Johan Cruyff is a 6,000-seat facility which has been developed at a cost of €19m (£17.1m/$21.4m). Meeting UEFA category III standards, the stadium has covered stands and a parking lot with 600 places. The complex will operate independently from the Ciutat Esportiva.

It was reported last week that Barcelona has engaged financial services company JB Capital Markets to secure investment for Espai Barça. Spanish newspaper El Confidencial said JB Capital has joined Goldman Sachs as an advisor to structure the financing of the redevelopment of the Camp Nou and the construction of the new Palau Blaugrana arena.

The major renovation of the Camp Nou is at the heart of Espai Barça, which also includes the development of the new Palau Blaugrana, the opening of Barça Campus and the Estadi Johan Cruyff.

Initial work on the €360m Camp Nou renovation, which will see the stadium have a seating capacity of around 105,000 once finished, commenced in the summer of 2018. Work began on Estadi Johan Cruyff with the symbolic laying of the first stone in September 2017.

Image: FC Barcelona