Barcelona put the brakes on Julián Álvarez: first they must sell | OneFootball

Barcelona could have some room to enter the winter transfer market, but any major move would depend on a player leaving the squad first. The club is working on the possibility of having positive Financial Fair Play in January, although it currently does not have enough room to take on a signing like Julián Álvarez.

Ferran Olivé, Barcelona’s vice president for finance, explained that the club currently has a small margin within LaLiga’s 1:1 rule, but not enough to cover the Argentine forward’s salary.

Julián Álvarez is not in the plans… for now

“In January we could sign players because we will have positive Fair Play, but we would have to sell.”

Barcelona’s financial situation means that any potential arrival of Julián Álvarez depends directly on freeing up salary space. Olivé explained that the club has a surplus of only three to four million euros, an amount that would allow for only a small-scale operation.

“That’s what the 1:1 rule means. For someone to come in, someone else has to leave. Right now we have a small surplus of 3 or 4 million that would allow us to do something very minor,” he explained.

The problem arises when talking specifically about the Atlético de Madrid attacker. According to Olivé, Álvarez’s salary would not currently fit within the available financial margin.

Therefore, even if Barcelona manages to reach January with positive Fair Play, it would first need to complete a sale or free up a significant amount of wage bill before considering an operation of that size.

Camp Nou, key to regaining financial strength

Barcelona’s financial situation has improved in recent years, but the club is still operating under major restrictions. At the last Assembly of Delegates, the club reported revenue of more than 1 billion euros during the 2025/26 financial year.

As part of that recovery process, the new Spotify Camp Nou is a fundamental piece of the club’s economic project.

Olivé believes that the return to the stadium will increase commercial income and boost shop sales, generating a positive effect on the club’s accounts.

“With the stadium finished and the team performing, sponsors will increase and we will sell more in the stores. It’s a cycle, and the stadium is the cornerstone of the project.”

Barcelona expects Camp Nou to be fully completed by the start of the 2028/29 season and for it to be able to host the 2029 Champions League final.

The priority: reducing debt

The club is currently dealing with a debt of 2.68 billion euros and has as one of its main goals ending its negative equity position, which stands at around 168 million euros.

The board’s plan is to use the increase in revenue generated by the stadium to begin gradually reducing that debt.

Meanwhile, the transfer market will continue to be shaped by the 1:1 rule. To bring in players on high wages, Barcelona must first create the necessary financial room.

And in Julián Álvarez’s case, the conclusion is clear: the Argentine would not fit into the club’s current finances, and any attempt to sign him in January would depend on a major departure.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.