Barça returns to Spotify Camp Nou in open training session in front of 22,000 fans

FC Barcelona players have returned to the pitch of the Spotify Camp Nou stadium on Friday morning for an open training session in front of 21,795 excited fans. 

The stadium is still under construction and the club are yet to confirm when they will play their first game back in their iconic home ground.

Barça have already received the first license to play games in the redeveloped Camp Nou stadium, but already announced that they will wait for the second permit before hosting a game there, which would allow for a capacity of 45,000 fans.

Friday marks the first time a ball has been kicked in the Camp Nou since May 2023, when the blaugrana played against RCD Mallorca.

"It looks amazing," Barça fan Narcís told Catalan News before entering the stadium. "With all the people who’ve come today, and the atmosphere that everyone will make inside, it’s going to be impressive."

Raquel affirmed that it will be "the best stadium in Europe," while young Noah was delighted to skip school on Friday to visit the Camp Nou for the first time in his life. 

Maria Dolors has been going to watch Barça for nearly 60 years, and she says the wait will be worth it. "I’m very excited to come back home after so long, I’m very happy," she added. 

Meanwhile, Mar explained that she woke up "really nervous" for the day ahead. "I’ve never been to the Camp Nou before, I’ve been outside it, but never inside," she explained. 

Carlos hadn't been to the Camp Nou since 2015, and told Catalan News the feeling was "incredible." He said that the newly developed stadium will be "the best thing that could have happened" to FC Barcelona. "We’re going to wait, but it’s going to turn out really cool." 

Meanwhile, Leonardo is excited to have an intimidating atmosphere back at home games. "Playing in Montjuïc isn’t the same as playing in Camp Nou," he said. "When other teams come here, it’ll be another story."

Infrastructure

The open training session allowed club management to test the infrastructure and logistics ahead of the much-anticipated first match at the Spotify Camp Nou. 

While there is no clear date on when that first game will be, many, including club president Joan Laporta, hope it will happen by the end of November. Barça will face Athletic Club on November 22 and Deportivo Alavés on November 29.

Barça had, however, first annouced that they would play games in the Camp Nou once more before the end of 2024, before then announcing last summer that they would play the Gamper pre-season friendly game against Italian side Como FC at the stadium. That match was instead moved to the Johan Cruyff Stadium just days before the event.

Laporta: "This is the return to the future"

After the training session, club president Joan Laporta spoke to the media and expressed his joy for the team having returned to the Camp Nou. 

"It's the most important project in the history of the club," the president said, adding that it's a "collective dream of culés." 

"It's a dream come true, we're celebrating today the return to the stadium," Laporta told journalists after the thousands of fans left the stadium following the open doors session.

He explained that the club expect to be playing games in the refurbished ground once again soon, and said that he hopes to receive the second license, the 1B, which would allow Barça to host games at Camp Nou with 45,000 fans, by the "end of the month."

Laporta's message to the fans was that the day was a "return to the future."

"Here we had some mythical experiences that we are remembering. When you enter here, immediately you remember some situation, some event, some goals, anything. But at the same time, it's also the present, and it's the future for the fans of FC Barcelona." 

Financially, returning to the home stadium is "very important" for FC Barcelona, as it will allow them to triple matchday revenue, according to the president, when it is fully completed. "In the end it will be 105,000 seats, it's very important for the club." 

Laporta also said that the redeveloped Camp Nou will be a "way to attract sponsors and investors." 

Meanwhile, Marcus Rashford told club media that it was a "nice feeling" to take to the Camp Nou pitch. "I think it’s a beautiful stadium, and as you can imagine, when it’s full, it’s going to be unbelievable," the English forward said.

"I can’t wait to be on this pitch with all the home fans. It’s lovely that they can be here to watch the first training session. It’s really good, the pitch is beautiful, and I’m looking forward to playing on it," he added.