Organising company of Barcelona’s Japan tour issues statement – “Barcelona made the right decision” | OneFootball

Barcelona fans, especially the ones hailing from Japan, were left in shock last night when the club officially announced the cancellation of their friendly against Vissel Kobe.

The Catalans also announced that they will not be visiting Japan tomorrow as scheduled.

Barcelona cited contractual breaches in the contract being the main factor behind the match cancellation, which, in turn, may have a bearing on Barcelona’s pre-season plans in Japan.

D-Drive’s statement following the contract breach

In the wake of the cancelled friendly between Barcelona and Vissel Kobe, the organising company behind the Asian tour, D-Drive, has released an official statement.

“The match between Vissel Kobe and FC Barcelona, which has just been canceled, was originally proposed by the Yasuda Group, the main sponsor of Real Sociedad, and was supposed to be organised locally in Japan,” the press statement read.

D-Drive went on to explain the full details of the fraud carried out by the Yasuda Group, which resorted to falsified documents.

“D-Drive was scheduled to receive the full payment for the match today, but the funds ultimately did not arrive. Instead, the Yasuda Group repeatedly provided invalid and forged documents, deceiving us by falsely claiming that the financial transfer had been made to Korea.

Joan Laporta won’t be too happy with the cancelled Vissel Kobe friendly (Photo by Eric Alonso/Getty Images)

“We have an audio recording of one of the Yasuda Group’s employees admitting that the group’s executive director ultimately did not send the funds, clearly proving deliberate fraud,” the press statement read.

The press statement from D-Drive also lauded Barcelona for quickly taking action and called the club’s decision to cancel the match against Vissel Kobe the right decision.

“Based on these facts, FC Barcelona made the correct and responsible decision to cancel the match in Japan. We will take legal action against the responsible Japanese parties to demand compensation,” the statement read.

The statement added that Barcelona’s plans in South Korea will go as planned, as there has been no such fraud in match organisation, and the payments have been made.

“Unlike the situation in Japan, the promoter in Korea has fully completed preparations and covered all costs related to the matches. So far, only the flight costs remain outstanding. To our fans in Korea: Do not worry,” it concluded.