Politics and football "will merge Sunday as Barcelona becomes more than just a football club for Catalonia’s separatists," according to Joseph Wilson of the AP. Barcelona’s home match against Las Palmas "falls on the day when the region’s secessionist leaders have vowed to defy authorities and hold a disputed referendum" on independence from the rest of Spain. The Spanish government "calls the vote illegal and has ordered a crackdown to stop any ballots from being cast, sparking protests in the streets and universities." Barcelona VP Jordi Cardoner said, "It won't be a normal day, it will be a historic day for the country, but we have to treat the football match like any other. We will carry the Catalan flag's (red and yellow) colors on the collars of our shirts and in our hearts." Camp Nou "has become a rallying point for Catalan nationalists in recent years with the boom in support for a break from Spain that polls show has reached roughly half of the region’s 7.5 million residents." Barcelona "has called for calm and for the spirit of sport to prevail." Cardoner: "We are not uncomfortable with the date of the match. It’s an important day for Catalonia and the interests of Barça have to be compatible with the majority of Catalans. I believe that each one of our members and fans can express whatever they want, but we ask them to do it respectfully. We are focusing on the competition. We all want to win the match." Barcelona defender Gerard Piqué tweeted on Thursday, "From today until Sunday we will express ourselves peacefully. Don't give them any excuse (for a crackdown). That’s what they want. And sing loud and clear" (AP, 9/28). LIBERTAD DIGITAL reported "security forces have guaranteed that the Barcelona-Las Palmas game will take place." National and regional police forces "will be responsible for guaranteeing the safety of voters, and all signs point to there being no problems with the game being played" (LIBERTAD DIGITAL, 9/28).
CALLING IT QUITS: In Madrid, Jordi Quixano reported Agustí Benedito announced on Thursday that he withdrew the vote of no confidence against Barcelona's current board. Benedito: "Cardoner said that the deadline had passed and he did this because he can. From this moment, we consider the vote of no confidence closed, over." The former Barcelona presidential candidate added that "he was proud" of the 12,504 signatures he collected (EL PAÍS, 9/28).
