‘We can’t have fascists at Barcelona’ – fiery final presidential debate deals in ‘lies’ and ‘destruction’ | OneFootball

Victor Font and Joan Laporta were involved in a fiery final debate in their bids to convince Barcelona members over who should be the club’s president for the next five years, with accusations of fascism and downright lies front and centre.

Laporta is very much playing the continuity card as he runs for a fourth mandate, claiming that his re-election is the only way to guarantee that Hansi Flick remains as manager, while Font is trying to win over voters by going harder on the club’s precarious financial situation and sustainability.

Laporta was on the offensive from the outset of the debate, indicating that Font, who was his closest challenger in 2021, was someone without real-life experience of the job.

“Font denies the obvious and tells lies. He’s a technocrat who works behind a computer. He wants to destroy everything we’ve built,” as per Sport.

One of the questions over Laporta’s management of Barcelona in recent years has been the ongoing delays to the renovation of Camp Nou, after he stated: “The plan is to have the roof by 2028. These projects aren’t an exact science; there are unforeseen circumstances. 80% of the capacity will be for season ticket holders, and there will be 5,000 more on the waiting list. Non-season ticket holders will get a 50% discount on tickets.”

Font, meanwhile, pointed out that Laporta has hiked the prices for match-going fans and members, saying: “On Sunday, we have to choose between a model of confrontation and a president who hands out membership cards, caters to tourists, and criminalises the supporters’ section; a Barca that limits us or an unstoppable one.

“The current economic model depends on tourism. A member who wants to go to a match has to spend a fortune.”

Another key point of departure between the two surrounds Deco and Alejandro Echevarria, with Laporta claiming the duo have built a successful side in Catalonia.

Indeed, he added: “Victor Font bases his campaign on lies. He wants to replace Deco with three people. Deco’s departure jeopardises Hansi Flick’s job security. This shows a complete lack of understanding of how things work.

“Deco is better than Mateu Alemany [his predecessor]. Alemany knows about as much about football as me. He has built the squad, revitalised a whole generation of young players. There’s a structure in place that works.”

On the other hand, Font attacked the presence of Laporta’s brother-in-law, who resigned from the Barcelona board after it was found out that he is a patron of the Francisco Franco Foundation, a highly controversial former Spanish dictator. With Laporta’s return to power in 2021, Echevarria returned as an unofficial advisor and fixer.

“Deco is a partner of Alejandro Echevarria, which is his main qualification for being Barca’s sporting director. He replaced Johan Cruyff’s son, who left undervalued, and Mateu Alemany. What he has, he inherited. We can’t have fascists at Barcelona [referring to Echevarria].”

The 2026 presidential election voting will take place on Sunday.