Despite having debts of €1.35 billion (£1.16 billion or $1.42 billion) in 2021, the Catalan giants have spent heavily ahead of the new campaign. Barca paid for the transfers by selling a portion of the club's television rights and a 25% stake in Barca Studios, but they will only be able to register their new players if they meet La Liga's financial fair play criteria.
The Camp Nou has had a busy transfer window, with the Catalans spending big on striker Robert Lewandowski, who arrived from Bayern Munich for a fee of €50 million (£42m/$51m). Raphinha, a Brazilian winger, has also joined from Leeds United for an initial fee of €59 million (£50 million or $59 million), while Sevilla centre-back Jules Kounde has become the club's latest signing.
According to Colin Millar of the Mirror, La Liga has rejected Barcelona's attempts to sign five new players: Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha, Jules Kounde, Franck Kessie, and Andreas Christensen. They have also been unable to register Ousmane Dembele and Sergi Roberto because they have signed contract renewals since the end of the previous season, only eight days before the league begins. "Barca's attempts to register their new contractual arrivals failed on Friday," the report continues, "with La Liga blocking their attempts to log the deals on their system." The news could have major ramifications for the Frenkie de Jong saga, which has seen the Dutch midfielder-said to be Barcelona's highest-paid player-constantly linked with the club.
Barcelona president Joan Laporta has insisted that the club is meeting its financial obligations after La Liga informed them that they could not register their new signings. Despite their financial concerns, the club spent more than €150 million this summer, but their new signings are unable to be registered until their wage bill is reduced. Barcelona has been using a series of 'levers' to fund their moves, and while Laporta admits they may need to use a fourth, he believes the club will be fine going forward. "We have done the job well and we believe that we meet all the requirements," Laporta said at the unveiling of €50 million signing Robert Lewandowski. The documentation has already been completed.
La Liga has also told Barcelona that they must sell a number of players in order to reduce their wage bill, with big earners like Frenkie de Jong and Memphis Depay linked with exits.
In the last two months, we have carried out operations worth €860 million, "Laporta added. "We finished the year with a profit, we are healthy, and the balance is positive," says the CEO, adding that "own funds are also positive." " We made responsible decisions and followed the rules, so the work we did will allow us to have a great workforce." While Barcelona have until the end of the month to register their players, it is expected that they will pull the fourth lever soon, with their first La Liga match.
The Catalans will need to work hard if their new additions are to play against Rayo Vallecano. Barcelona begin their new league season on August 13 against Rayo Vallecano, but they have yet to register any of their summer signings.
Worryingly, Barcelona has already gone to great lengths to improve their financial situation, selling 25% of their TV rights to Sixth Street and a 25% stake in Barça Studio to Socios.com. According to the report, the club hoped to register new players with the €767 million raised from these transactions, but these efforts have thus far been insufficient. While club president Joan Laporta is rumoured to be planning to sell another 24.5 percent of Barça Studios, it is understood that player sales will still be required on the balance sheet in order to reduce the wage bill. During Lewandowski's presentation this week, Laporta told fans, "We worked hard to enrol all of them [the players]."
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