Barça would rather forfeit 4.5 million euros than travel to Tangier
FC Barcelona has definitively withdrawn from its friendly match scheduled for 15 August in Tangier. The Catalan club is giving up an estimated 4.5 million euros in revenue, preferring not to take any risks with its team.
Just a few days earlier, however, the trip to Morocco was still on track. On 29 July, Barça officially announced that it was finalizing the organization of a friendly match in Tangier against a local team. According to the Spanish sports press, Ittihad of Tangier was expected to be the opponent.
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The situation changed with the events in Sebta. Barça ultimately announced on 6 August that “the current context of uncertainty” no longer allowed the match to be organized under good conditions, according to the club. The club did not publicly provide further details about the reasons for its withdrawal.
4.5 million euros left on the table
The security reason, however, was cited by Blick. The Swiss newspaper directly links the cancellation to the migration crisis in Sebta and to new calls circulated on social media for a mobilization on 15 August, precisely the day Hansi Flick’s players were supposed to be in Tangier.
The decision is costly. The Moroccan match was expected to bring Barça around 4.5 million euros, according to Mundo Deportivo, a particularly welcome sum in the middle of the transfer window. The Catalan club nevertheless prioritized the safety of its players and staff and gave up this revenue.
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Morocco has already been replaced in Barça’s schedule. The club will ultimately travel to Switzerland to face FC Basel on Sunday, 16 August, at St. Jakob-Park. The match is now confirmed. Hansi Flick himself contacted the Basel directors after the trip to Tangier was abandoned.
