Soriano to announce decision in coming weeks

Catalan sports journalist Alex Santos claims on his blog that former Barcelona economic vice-president Ferran Soriano will in the coming weeks make a decision on his role in the upcoming elections for president of FC Barcelona in June.

After Spanair, the Spanish airline of which Soriano currently is the chairman, has reached over the last days agreements with the employees and the banks which temporarily solves their financial and social problems, he has now the time to look at his possible participation in the elections.

The options would go from only taking part as an observer over a candidacy on his own to a candidacy that could include current Barcelona vice-presidents and presidential candidates Alfons Godall and Jaume Ferrer. Soriano would make his decision public in two or three weeks - at the most one month - from now.

Barcelona treasurer Xavier Sala i Martín claims on his Facebook page that Santos has first-hand information since he yesterday met with Soriano in the Semon restaurant in Barcelona and thinks it now has become clear that, when Soriano will announce his candidacy, he will do that alone.

Read more:
Soriano says current job compatible with presidency
Poll result: Will Soriano take over Godall candidacy?
Soriano repeats wish to play role in elections

Former brother-in-law Laporta reappearing on stage

Catalan sports weekly paper Gol claims that Barcelona treasurer Xavier Sala i Martín has tried to convince former Barcelona director Alejandro Echevarría to join the candidacy he will be part of in the upcoming presidential elections.

Sala i Martín and Echevarría, the brother of Barcelona president Joan Laporta's ex-spouse Constanza Echevarría, are reported to have met at the Luz de Gas night club in Barcelona but after the talks a deal wouldn't seem likely.

Two Catalan sports journalists, 'Diego Valor' and Alex Santos, meanwhile claim on their respective blogs that Echevarría is in the background supporting the candidacy of Barcelona assets vice-president Jaume Ferrer.

Alejandro Echevarría, at that time still the brother-in-law of Laporta, joined the Barcelona board in February 2004. On 20 October 2005, he left the club after accusations that he was a member of a foundation dedicated to the life and works of former Spanish dictator Francisco Franco (read more here).

Read more:
The Board Movements (2003-2009)
No deal after new Godall-Ferrer negotiations

Llaurado confirms that he will run

Former Barcelona vice-president Jaume Llauradó has confirmed to Catalan television channel TV3 that he will be a candidate in the elections for president of FC Barcelona later this year (read more here). The 65-year old Catalan businessman would officially present his candidacy once the elections are called.

Catalan radio station RAC 1 claims thay Llauradó was not happy that the story was leaked to the press and that he didn't want to make statement to them until the elections are officially called. Since he didn't deny, the radio station sees this as a confirmation that he will take part.

Catalan sports paper El Mundo Deportivo claims that Llauradó at least wants to improve his score of the 2003 elections when he obtained less than 2 per cent of the votes. Catalan sports paper Sport reports that Llauradó has already his headquarters, a campaign team and the financial means in place.

Catalan sports journalist Alex Santos meanwhile writes on his blog that people close to Llauradó see the news reports more as a poll to see how the Barcelona voters would react to a possible new candidacy of the former Barcelona director.

Read more:
Former vice-president Llaurado will run for president
Who will be the next president of FC Barcelona?
Will Llaurado run for the fourth time?

Council linked with Rosell working on ethical code

Last Thursday, the Consell Sènior Blaugrana (Blaugrana Senior Council) publicly presented itself during an event assisted by 100 to 150 people at the Princesa Sofía hotel in Barcelona.

The Consell Sènior Blaugrana wants to unite Barcelona club members who are older than 60 years and are a club member for more than 20 years. The objective of the Council is to provide ideas that can lead to a better management and a better public image of the club.

The executive committee of the Council consists of six people and is presided by Catalan business man Ramón Pont, who is rumoured to be part of the candidacy of former Barcelona sports vice-president Sandro Rosell (read more here). Rosell, who will run for president next year, assisted the event. The committee also includes the fathers of Rosell and of his right-hand man Josep Maria Bartomeu (see below).

The main focus of the Council is at this moment the elaboration of an ethical code for the club which should make the decisions taken by the club more transparent.

A first draft of the code has been drawn up by university professors Antonio Argandoña and Fermín Morales and is based on the principles of legality, honesty and service to the members, loyalty to the club, information and transparency, participation, pluralism and austerity.

Apart from giving some general criteria, the code would more concretely want to avoid certain specific acts, among which getting involved in conflicts of interest, putting pressure on others to obtain a decision in the benefit of oneself or of a third party, hiring relatives as an employee or a commercial partner, disclosing corporate decisions to third parties that are not involved, publicly or privately behaving in a way that damages the image of the club, accepting commissions and accepting gifts that can lead to a lack of objectivity.

The ultimate goal is that, after the upcoming presidential elections, this ethical code would become part of the club's by-laws and that an ethical commission would be put in place to safeguard the code by controlling and sanctioning the acts by the club's directors and executives. The commission would consist of six people and the president of the commission would be part of the board of directors.

Read more:
Rosell working on ethical code
Internet entrepreneur joins Rosell candidacy


members of the executive committee of the consell sènior blaugrana:

Josep Maria Bartomeu
chairman of the TEAM group
>>> father of Josep Maria Bartomeu, who is rumoured to be part of Barcelona presidential candidate Sandro Rosell’s team of directors

Ramón Garriga
former chief executive of the TÜV Rheinland group in Spain

Joan Granados
former chief executive of FC Barcelona and former general director of Catalan public media corporation CCRTV
>>> father of Roger Granados, who is rumoured to be part of Barcelona presidential candidate Sandro Rosell’s team of directors

Jordi Montané
chairman of the Pontex group

Ramón Pont
chairman of the Borges group
>>> rumoured to be part of Barcelona presidential candidate Sandro Rosell’s team of directors

Jaume Rosell
former secretary of FC Barcelona and chairman of the FAR group
>>> father of Barcelona presidential candidate Sandro Rosell


picture:
Barcelona presidential candidate Sandro Rosell (centre) with the six members of the executive committee of the Senior Blaugrana Council on Thursday 12 November in Barcelona. At Rosell's right hand, you see Ramón Pont, president of the Council, on Rosell's left hand side, you see his father Jaume Rosell.

sources: as, el 9 esportiu, el mundo deportivo, e-notícies, esadir.blogspot.com, pelikano, sport