Barcelona directors approved Limak for Camp Nou rebuild despite lowest rating in evaluation | OneFootball

According to an exclusive update from Cadena SER, it has been brought to light that Turkish company Limak was awarded the contract for rebuilding the Spotify Camp Nou despite being rated the lowest bidder by Barcelona’s technical experts.

The decision has now sparked questions over transparency and internal decision-making within the club.

It is understood that Limak received the lowest technical score in the evaluation phase, but Barcelona’s management overruled that decision, declaring the technical report as “non-binding.”

The club later revised the selection rules, a move that effectively opened the door for Limak to take control of the ambitious redevelopment project.

Irregularities continue to plague the project

Interestingly, sources familiar with the matter claim that Limak initially failed to justify how its proposed construction timeline was significantly shorter than other bidders.

Despite that, the firm was chosen precisely because of that same quick timeline, a promise it has already failed to fulfil.

The internal report gave Limak less than 50 out of 100 points, mainly because its proposal lacked clarity and demanded an upfront payment of nearly €200 million, compared to rival bids that asked for just around €12 million.

Questions are being raised over Barcelona’s handling of Camp Nou redevelopment. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)

Reports also reveal that Limak’s project was suspended by the evaluation committee before being reinstated against their own recommendations. The firm was never the committee’s preferred option.

However, the selection took a sudden turn after Barcelona president Joan Laporta and Limak president Nihat Özdemir were seen together in the stands during a Galatasaray-Barcelona match in Istanbul.

There is much more to the story

It later emerged that Limak’s bid breached several conditions set during Josep Maria Bartomeu’s tenure.

Still, the company secured the deal by guaranteeing record construction speed and won by a 16-point margin over the second-placed bidder.

Furthermore, Barcelona vice-president Maria Elena Fort stated that Limak would face a penalty of €1 million per day for project delays. By that standard, Limak already owes the club around €300 million.

Yet, Barcelona have not enforced the penalty, attributing the setbacks to “unforeseeable circumstances.”

However, the contract clearly states that delays due to material delivery are not considered force majeure and extensions are only allowed in cases like fires or earthquakes.

Amid these complications, Barcelona have now hired other firms to handle specific parts of the stadium, including the locker room construction, in a desperate bid to accelerate the project’s completion.