Joan Laporta rival asks Barcelona President to step down due to three areas of mismanagement | OneFootball

Defeated presidential candidate Victor Font remains a critical voice against Barcelona’s struggling incumbent Joan Laporta, and has written an open letter to him with three demands. If he cannot carry these out, then Font has asked him to step down from the role.

Font signalled that potential conflict of interests between Sporting Director Deco and commissions earned for player deals, a potential conflict of interest in board members receiving financial backing from a club supplier, and the situation with Xavi Hernandez are all issues that are symptomatic of the wider problems of the club.

https://twitter.com/barcacentre/status/1793565388695019898

He requested that the club carry out an audit to clear up transparency issues, and that no risky operations were taken that could further endanger the club’s financial position, citing the sale of assets such as Barca Studios.

Should Laporta ‘not feel he has the heart to go on due to the complexity of the situation’, then Font believes it will be best that Laporta steps down.

The Barcelona President is not known for his willingness to back down or compromise, but he is undoubtedly entangled in a web of difficult situations. The odds of him stepping down still seem slim though, despite the first signs of discontent on matchdays, with some fans chanting against Laporta.

Full Letter Below, as provided by Sport:

Dear President,

I am writing to you as a result of the deep concern that many members feel about the progress of Barca in the economic, social and institutional spheres, which are the areas that have to function well if we want sporting successes to accompany us. Not long ago I shared with our fellow members my diagnosis of the situation in a letter that I attach to this document.

Only in recent days three new symptoms have appeared that increase the perception of misgovernance: the information published to the media about the failure to comply with the club’s code of ethics with the payment of expenses of the personal guarantees of the directors by a supplier, the news about possible conflicts of interest of the sports director and his task as player representative, and the terrible management of the replacement (or not) of Xavi Hernandez as coach of our first team.

But, in addition, in the coming weeks the 23-24 season has to be closed and the situation of the accounts continues to be one of operating losses. Likewise, there is very little time left to find a real investor to validate the hitherto fictitious sale of 49% of Barca Studios and who is willing to enter at a valuation of €400m, which is an unrealistic value, much above what the market is willing to pay.

Given this situation, as a representative of the thousands of members who trusted me in the last elections, I want to ask you, as president, and your Board of Directors the following:

That the club carry out an exercise of transparency in all the issues that are very negatively affecting its image and reputation, as committed at the beginning of the mandate. Especially in the issue of endorsements, which involves non-compliance with the institution’s ethical code, and possible conflicts of interest for the sports director.

That in the coming weeks they avoid making any dubious operation that involves a payment ahead of time (Barca *Studios), a new sale of assets (strategic players) and/or that more future income is mortgaged (new agreement with Nike), with the sole objective to balance the accounts and cover up the economic reality that has not been corrected.

We must recognise once and for all where we are and rebuild the institution from the foundations. The situation is critical and maximum professionalism and experience are needed to reverse it. If we take advantage of all the potential we have, we will be able to compete again against the best.

As you may remember, at the beginning of your mandate I made our impact plan available to you. I remain at your disposal to help in any way we can. But if, given the complexity of the moment and as it seems due to the poor results achieved since 2021, you do not see yourself with the heart to move Barca forward, we ask you to take a step aside. We represent a new generation of cules and we are ready, prepared to transform the club, modernise it and return it once and for all to the place it deserves.