Barcelona’s financial situation has drawn attention beyond Spain after The Athletic, the sports platform owned by The New York Times, analyzed the club’s finances based on its 2025/26 accounts. The club generated revenue of €1,020.5 million, becoming only the second football club in history to surpass the €1 billion mark after Real Madrid. However, it ended the year with a loss of €17.8 million after tax.
Total financial debt stood at approximately €1,840.3 million as of June 30, 2026, up from €1,450.5 million the previous year—an increase of nearly 27%. Since the close of the financial year, the club has issued additional debt of €105 million over ten years, making it likely to exceed €2 billion during the 2026/27 season.
Espai Barça: The Key to the Crisis
More than €1,200 million of the debt is tied to the Espai Barça project, which the club expects to recover through new revenue from Spotify Camp Nou. That revenue is projected to add around €250 million annually once the project is complete.
However, delays in construction have triggered financing costs. Barcelona paid over €90 million in interest in the past year, while the project budget anticipates needing about €300 million more to complete. The club also faces maturities of approximately €149 million in 2026/27, €346 million in 2027/28, and €366 million in 2029/30.
Liquidity Pressures
The Athletic cites the Anthony Gordon transfer as an example of liquidity pressure. Barcelona had to take out a bank loan to cover the first installment to Newcastle, amounting to €22.3 million, increasing the final cost due to interest. The club explained that these moves are related to cash flow management amid the stadium construction delays.
Barcelona has obligations of €905 million due during the 2026/27 season, against current assets of €529 million, resulting in negative working capital of €376 million.
Wages and Revenue
The wage bill rose to €573.7 million last season, an increase of 12%. The 2026/27 budget expects it to reach a record level of €648.9 million.
On the other hand, commercial revenue increased to €564.1 million, and Barça Licensing & Merchandising generated €189.5 million. The gradual return to Camp Nou has also begun to boost stadium revenue, particularly from VIP areas.
The Athletic does not believe Barcelona is on the brink of collapse, but it is operating on a very thin financial line: revenue exceeding €1 billion alongside losses, and debt approaching €2 billion.
The club’s economic future remains tied to completing Espai Barça as quickly as possible, increasing Camp Nou revenue, and refinancing its “mountain of debt” as maturities and interest accumulate.
The Catalan club currently faces a real economic paradox: it has never brought in this much money, yet it has also never needed to manage figures of this magnitude to remain competitive among Europe’s elite.