Camp Nou fails the rain test as water pours into the press area
Water poured into the Camp Nou press area during Barcelona’s 5-1 win over Feyenoord, although the stadium’s final roof has not yet been installed.
FC Barcelona opened their Champions League campaign with a 5-1 victory over Feyenoord, but not everything at Spotify Camp Nou worked as smoothly as Hansi Flick’s attack. During the match, rainwater poured into the area beside the press tribune.
Dutch journalist Mikos Gouka published an eight-second video showing several streams of water falling from the structure above a passage next to the media seats. The footage confirms the incident, although it does not establish the precise source or technical cause of the leak.
5-1 ON THE PITCH, A DIFFERENT CONTEST IN THE STANDS
Barcelona had few problems against Feyenoord. Raphinha scored twice, while Karim Adeyemi, Lamine Yamal and Gabriel Jesus also found the net. Sem Steijn scored the visitors’ only goal.
The stadium had considerably more trouble dealing with the downpour. Gouka’s clip quickly circulated on social media, offering an awkward contrast between Barcelona’s polished performance on the pitch and the conditions surrounding journalists inside the ground.
THIS WAS NOT THE COMPLETED NEW ROOF
One distinction matters. It would be inaccurate to claim that the finished roof of the renovated Camp Nou was leaking, because that roof has not yet been installed. The construction schedule placed its installation in the summer of 2027, after work on the third tier.
The video instead shows a problem within the stadium’s current, unfinished configuration. It does not reveal whether temporary protection, waterproofing, drainage or another part of the structure failed. Barcelona have not issued a public technical explanation identifying the cause of the incident.
AN AWKWARD IMAGE FOR BARCELONA’S FLAGSHIP PROJECT
Spotify Camp Nou remains an active construction site and is operating at reduced capacity. That explains why the final roof is absent, but it does not make water pouring into a working media area during a Champions League fixture look any less embarrassing.
Barcelona promote the redevelopment as a major step towards a modern stadium, improved services and stronger future revenue. Against Feyenoord, the scoreboard supplied the desired message with a 5-1 win. The press tribune supplied another one: the grand vision is still accompanied by some very visible—and very wet—unfinished business.
