From the UAE to the Camp Nou: two new agreements to revive Barcelona's coffers
Barcelona have opened up two fresh revenue streams to keep improving the Catalan club's finances, striking deals with Ohana Development and Babylon Park.
The newspaper AS report that both agreements must first be ratified by the delegate members at Barcelona's general assembly on 19 September. All parties already hold part of the terms, though, and the two operations will hand the club recurring revenue across several years.
Financially, the Ohana Development deal carries the most weight. The real estate developer from the Emirates has signed up to two separate activities. The first grants a licence to develop a residential project featuring commercial areas, entertainment spaces and residential units linked to the Barcelona brand in the Emirates, with the club's presence running until 2055.
The second is a sponsorship contract that runs until 2030. The company's logo will appear on the back of both the men's and women's first-team shirts during the 2027-2028, 2028-2029 and 2029-2030 seasons, but not in the Champions League.
Together, the two agreements could earn Barcelona 65 million euros. Around 40 million will come from the three-season sponsorship contract, while the remaining 25 million will be paid out at a rate of one million euros per season until 2055.
The second deal centres on the Spotify Camp Nou itself. Babylon Park, who specialise in running indoor entertainment parks, will take a long-term concession to develop a family entertainment centre built around the Barcelona theme inside the ground.
Running for 25 years, the licence matters to the Catalan club for a simple reason. Barcelona don't just pocket a financial return for the use of their name. The agreement guarantees the club a minimum revenue and hands them a share of everything the entertainment centre generates.
That fits Barcelona's push to use the Spotify Camp Nou every day of the year, not just on matchdays.
Barcelona's revenue has already passed one billion euros. Even so, they need to keep growing it to meet their financial obligations and fund the investments tied to the Espai Barça project.
