Drastic UEFA fine in store for Barcelona impacting key players

Because of accusations of financial rule violations in previous seasons, Barcelona could face a heavy UEFA fine.

After sweeping their UEFA Champions League group, which included Porto, Shakhtar Donetsk, and Antwerp, the La Liga heavyweights advanced to the Round of 16. Serie A champions Napoli will be their next opponents in a two-legged clash.

But now it seems like they may not be able to continue competing in the competition over the long haul. New information suggests the club may face a punishment in the form of a ban.

This would be in the top club tournament in Europe for failing to comply with Financial Fair Play regulations.

Ban to be longer than one season?

There has been a lot of coverage of Barca’s financial problems recently. There have been reports that the Catalan club hasn’t followed the UEFA rules with regards to FFP.

In the future, Barcelona could find it difficult to be given entry into UEFA competitions. Further damage to their image and capacity to attract A-listers are potentially possible outcomes.

The Catalan hierarchy’s lavish spending has reportedly put Xavi and his team in over a billion dollars in debt.

Thus, they may be in danger of a ban from the UEFA Champions League. This is due to their violations of Financial Fair Play standards. That is according to the German newspaper Die Welt.

After years of questions about their compliance with Financial Fair Play, UEFA believe that Barcelona may face a severe punishment.

The club’s financial statements are a mess. Although, the club did announce a profit of $335 million this year.

Starting with the next term, this financial irregularity might result in a suspension from the Champions League. The duration would be for two to three years. The seriousness of the matter is highlighted by the possibility of being removed from one of the most esteemed tournaments.

The Blaugrana were fined around $550,000 in the summer by UEFA’s financial control chamber after they were found to have “incorrectly declared profits” and “relevant” revenue.

Now, a multiple-year ban is within the realms of possibility. The principle of “the greater the loss, the greater the penalty” will guide the enforcement.

More reason to join European Super League?

If Barcelona are keen to join the European Super League, it may be because their finances are in chaos.

A recent ruling by the European Union deemed the prohibition on teams entering the European Super League by UEFA and FIFA to be illegal.

Soccer tournaments are deemed to be commercial activity. As such, they’re obligated to adhere to competition regulations, according to this decision that benefits the clubs.

Famous teams like Real Madrid and Barcelona welcomed the decision with open arms, despite criticism from supporters and other clubs.

They then revealed their ideas for a 64-team tournament. This would include a women’s division and solidarity payments for other clubs in Europe.

The Camp Nou outfit expressed their intention to join the breakaway tournament in response to Thursday’s ruling by the European Union of Justice.

“FC Barcelona wishes to express its satisfaction with the sentence of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) assessing the Super League project as proposed by A22 Sports”, they said in a statement.

“As one of the clubs driving the Super League project, FC Barcelona feels that the sentence paves the way for a new elite level football competition in Europe by opposing the monopoly over the football world, and wishes to initiate new discussions as to the path that European competitions should take in the future.”

Photo credits: IMAGO / PRiME Media Images : IMAGO / ZUMA Wire