Barcelona receive green light from La Liga to host Valencia at Estadi Johan Cruyff – report | OneFootball

FC Barcelona are yet to play their first home game of the 2025/26 season owing to the continued delays over their return to Spotify Camp Nou.

La Liga accepted the club’s request to schedule their first three games of the campaign on the road, from which they have collected seven points.

However, the Blaugrana’s first home game of the season is now on the horizon, as they are scheduled to host Valencia on 14 September.

But, the venue for the game remains undetermined as Barcelona are yet to obtain all the necessary permits and licences required to open the Spotify Camp Nou for the game.

La Liga approve Estadi Johan Cruyff as a venue

As such, the idea of Barcelona hosting Valencia at their reserve team stadium, Estadi Johan Cruyff, has been gaining weight in recent days.

Now, according to Catalunya Radio, La Liga has given the go-ahead for Barcelona to play the match against Valencia at Estadi Johan Cruyff.

Estadi Johan Cruyff set to host Barcelona vs Valencia. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)

The stadium at Ciutat Esportiva Joan Gamper can only hold 6000 fans, which falls below the 8,000 minimum attendance required by the league’s regulations.

However, the organisation led by Javier Tebas has seemingly opted to overlook the problem for once, given the special circumstances.

Another issue with Estadi Johan Cruyff is the updating of the VAR system available.

Although the stadium already has the ‘low-cost’ VAR system used in Liga F and the Women’s Champions League, additional cameras would need to be installed to meet La Liga requirements, including those for semi-automatic offside technology.

This would cost approximately €70,000, and the club are prepared to carry out the work, allowing La Liga to give the green light to use the venue for the Valencia clash.