Joan Laporta talks Hansi Flick, Deco and Spotify Camp Nou before relinquishing Barcelona presidency

Barcelona president Joan Laporta has granted the final interview of his current mandate, using the platform to underline the achievements of his second spell at the helm and to outline the challenges still awaiting the club before members vote in the March elections.

Speaking exclusively to the club’s official media channels, Laporta confirmed that he will step aside “in the coming days” to allow the electoral process to begin, though he made clear his intention to seek re-election and continue steering the project he believes is “restoring Barça to its rightful place.”

Central to that vision is the completion of the Spotify Camp Nou, the €1.5 billion redevelopment that Laporta described as “the most important heritage project in the club’s history.” While acknowledging that the entire third tier remains unfinished, he set a hard deadline of “the end of 2027” for a fully roofed stadium, adding that negotiations with La Liga and UEFA are under way to ensure the team is not forced back to the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys during the final four months of construction.

The president also used the interview to defend the decision to withdraw from the European Super League, insisting that Barcelona “will never again abandon its own stadium” and that the economic model now in place can sustain elite competitiveness without external breakaway competitions.

On the sporting front, Laporta reserved special praise for head coach Hansi Flick, whose appointment he labelled “one of the great successes” of his tenure. “He has built an incredible team, which has restored the illusion to the Catalans,” Laporta said. “He is a Cruyffista, he has understood the idiosyncrasies of the club, he is a born winner, very demanding. He has earned the respect and affection of everyone. I really like the harmony he has with Deco.”

That harmony, according to Laporta, has been instrumental in the sporting director’s own success since returning to the club. Comparing Deco to former technical secretary Txiki Begiristain, the president hailed the Portuguese’s recruitment of Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha, Jules Koundé, Dani Olmo, Joan García and, most recently, Marcus Rashford, as well as his overhaul of the academy and renewal of existing contracts. “His incorporation has been very successful,” Laporta said. “He is a man who knows Barça perfectly.”

Laporta closed the interview by highlighting the club’s improved balance sheet, noting that the ratio of player salaries to ordinary income has fallen from 98 percent to 58 percent, bringing Barcelona back within UEFA guidelines “without losing competitive strength, which has also been rejuvenated.”

“Good results are not by divine grace,” he insisted, “but by a job well done.”