There have been "some murmurings of discontent" about Barcelona's decision to sell naming rights for its stadium from fans "reluctant to say goodbye to the iconic Camp Nou name," but Espai Barcelona development Project Manager William T. Mannarelli insisted that Barça's socios understand "why it is necessary," according to Mark Lomas of SPORT360. Mannarelli said, "Barça were very transparent about the whole issue of naming rights. Obviously the question of sponsors has become a bit of an issue with the shirt deal with Qatar Airways. But there were individual surveys with socios on the issues around the new stadium. Interestingly, the No. 1 priority for the socios was a) 'How much will my season ticket cost?' and b) 'Don't mess with my seat.' Naming rights was completely at the other end of the spectrum of priorities. We thought the fans would go crazy about naming rights but even passionate Catalonians understand. The socios of Barca pay 25 percent of what they do at Real Madrid, or Manchester City. Their season ticket to watch this show is insanely good value. ... As long as the club can identify a partner whose agenda is aligned with Barcelona and their 'mas que un club' philosophy, things will be fine" (SPORT360, 9/14).
NEYMAR SIGNING: ESPN reported Barcelona President Josep Maria Bartomeu, and his predecessor, Sandro Rosell, have been given 20 days by Barcelona's High Court to "present documents related to the controversial signing of Brazilian forward Neymar" from Brasileiro club Santos. The court issued the timetable late on Monday via a "ruling instructing the entity and its current and former presidents" to present their written defense statements. Bartomeu remains a suspect in a magistrate's "ongoing investigation into alleged misappropriation of funds to sign Neymar." This latest ruling is "the next step" as Barcelona prepares for a trial over the alleged tax offenses in the transfer case. Barcelona, which will be tried as a legal entity if the case "comes before the bench, Bartomeu and Rosell have 20 days in which to file their defence documentation" (ESPN, 9/15).
BUDGET SET: In Madrid, Sergi Font reported Barcelona's board approved of the budget it will present to members at the next general assembly. The club is expecting to earn €633M ($714M), with a net profit of €20.2M ($23M) (MARCA, 9/15).
