Ten uncomfortable questions about Barcelona’s finances as opposition group puts debt at €2.441 billion

Barcelona has already celebrated record revenue, but the opposition platform Som un Clam has turned its attention to the other side of the balance sheet. The group has published ten questions for Joan Laporta’s board, covering debt, liquidity, financial costs, Espai Barça and the credibility of the club’s budgets.

The headline figure is €2.441 billion in total debt. That is Som un Clam’s calculation, not the regulatory debt figure officially used by Barcelona. The club separates its operating debt from the project financing arranged for the stadium redevelopment, creating two very different ways of presenting the same financial burden.

RECORD REVENUE DOES NOT END THE DEBATE

Barcelona generated €1.06 billion in revenue during the 2025/26 season, passing the billion-euro mark for the first time in the club’s history. Its ordinary operating result was only €200,000, however, while the final accounts recorded a net loss of €18 million.

The club reported gross debt of €910 million. That number excludes the €1.5 billion financing package for Espai Barça, which Barcelona describes as a separate project designed to be repaid through revenue generated by the redeveloped stadium.

Som un Clam uses a broader calculation. It says the club’s total debt has reached €2.441 billion, an increase of €357 million in one year, with €676.7 million due in the short term.

Record income provided the headline Barcelona wanted. The liabilities have now supplied the footnotes the board would probably prefer people to skip.

QUESTIONS OVER CASH AND FINANCING COSTS

The group says Barcelona obtained €354.4 million in new financing while its cash position still fell by €91.5 million and operating cash flow remained negative.

It also highlights €114.2 million in financial costs, arguing that those expenses are consuming much of the progress made through the club’s operating activities.

Further questions concern negative equity of €168 million, the growth of non-sporting expenditure and another increase in sporting payroll costs. According to the figures cited in the statement, the budget for 2026/27 puts those costs at €633 million, close to the €636 million recorded before the pandemic.

BARÇA STUDIOS AND ANOTHER OPTIMISTIC BUDGET

Som un Clam has also questioned Barcelona’s decision to increase its ownership of Barça Studios from 53.4% to 63.14%. The group claims that the asset has already suffered an impairment equivalent to 69% of the original investment.

The statement also refers to Barcelona’s breach of UEFA’s financial regulations. The club has already paid a €15 million penalty, while the group warns that further consequences could reach another €45 million. That additional amount remains a potential risk rather than a confirmed cost.

Barcelona expects revenue to rise to €1.195 billion in 2026/27 and has budgeted for a €1 million net profit. Som un Clam points to four consecutive budgets that were not fully met and asks why members should accept the latest forecast without further explanation.

THE BOARD NOW HAS TEN QUESTIONS TO ANSWER

The opposition platform wants a specific debt-reduction plan, a detailed account of the remaining Espai Barça costs and a timetable for restoring positive equity. It also asks whether regular player sales have become essential to balancing the books.

These remain questions and interpretations presented by an opposition group, not the findings of an independent audit. Still, many of the figures originate in Barcelona’s own financial documents and cannot simply be dismissed as political noise.

The club can continue celebrating its first billion-euro revenue season. Its members may still want to know why such extraordinary income requires so many explanations about the debt left behind.