Cartoon 44: A Camp Nou 2.0?

Fan A:
Soriano proposes to create a Camp Nou 2.0.

Which would mean that the fans could get all kind of information through their mobile phone.

Fan B:
I prefer a Camp Nou where we win all games with at least 2-0.

(click the cartoon to enlarge)


by kap

source:
el mundo deportivo

check more election cartoons here

Ingla contradicts presumed season-ticket upgrade

Catalan sports paper Sport claimed yesterday that Barcelona presidential candidate Marc Ingla and several key members of his candidacy have tried in 2005 to get an upgrade of the season-tickets of themselves and some family members and that former Barcelona vice-president Albert Vicens had organized the whole upgrade for board members.

After several denials yesterday evening and this morning, when among other things Ingla said at a press conference that he already has the same seat for over fourty years, the candidacy put out a press release with more detailed information.

In the note, it is explained that Vicens was never in charge of any relocation of season-tickets, that Ingla and Alfons Godall still have the same seats as before they joined the board in 2003 and that Vicens and Ferran Soriano changed their seats in 2008 through the normal procedure of relocation that is open to all club members.

Read more:
Ingla: "I will be a very quiet president"
Former vice-president changes Rosell for Ingla
Ingla wants to appoint club ambassadors

The Quotes: Guixa, Minguella, Soriano, Salvat, Rosell

"We will all have difficulties to get the 2.095 signatures. The decision of Laporta that didn't allow us to collect signatures at the last league game has hurt us. We'll have to wait and see what happens."

Jaume Guixà


"The only thing I would ask Txiki if he wants to continue is that he would clearly explain me how and why Henrique and Keirrison have been transferred."

Josep Maria Minguella


"I don't understand why Sandro Rosell goes to Madrid and declares there that we have a catastrophic debt while that's a lie. We have a debt of around 240 millions, which is less than our opponents."

Ferran Soriano


"Barça should not have links with countries that seem to be a dictatorship."

Santiago Salvat


"I am not against the collective sale of the television rights but only if it doesn't hurt our interests."

Sandro Rosell

read more election quotes here

The Quotes: Soriano, Perrin, Salvat, Rosell, Ferrer

"A youth player who arrives at the first team has cost us 2 to 3 million euros."

Ferran Soriano


"Sandro Rosell is a balloon that is deflating."

Albert Perrín


"We will pass the cut. We have already around 1.300 signatures."

Santiago Salvat


"The figure of an honorary president doesn't exist in the club statutes. So the members will first have to decide if they want this and then if they want Johan Cruyff."

Sandro Rosell


"Our campaign will cost around 1 million euros."

Jaume Ferrer

read more election quotes here

The Quotes: Godall, Ferrer, Salvat, Soriano, Rosell

"Both Ferran Soriano and Marc Ingla, who got to know agents and other people in the world of football when they were economic and sports vice-presidents, have received phone calls with suggestions and offers regarding players. We will contact Txiki and transmit him all the information we received."

Alfons Godall


"We want to collect around 10.000 signatures."

Jaume Ferrer


"We have carried out a poll in the surroundings of the Camp Nou that indicated that we would win with 42% of the votes"

Santiago Salvat


"It's ridiculous that a candidate thinks that he has more possibilities than the club to sign players."

Ferran Soriano


"Pep shouldn't have total control. He only needs the power that the coach of Barcelona should have."

Sandro Rosell

read more election quotes here

[picture] Soriano visiting Brazil

Former Barcelona economic vice-president Ferran Soriano travelled last week to Brazil to present the "A bola não entra por acaso", a Portuguese translation of his sports management book "La pilota no entra per atzar" (The ball doesn't go in by chance).

While he was in Brazil, Soriano also visited the Barcelona fan club of São Paulo to talk about the presidential candidacy of Marc Ingla, of which he is a member.

The Quotes: Perrin, Minguella, Ferrer, Ingla, Rosell

"Ferran Soriano tried a coup. Someone like that shouldn't return to the club."

Albert Perrín


"Someone has a paper that allows him to negotiate the transfers of Xavi and Ibrahimovic."

Josep Maria Minguella


"Rosell would probably prefer to be sports director instead of president."

Jaume Ferrer


"The poll of El Periódico? It will make our win more epic."

Marc Ingla


"There are 300 fan club who have only been created to get tickets. we will clean that up."

Sandro Rosell

read more election quotes here

The Quotes: Ferrer, Salvat, Godall, Rosell, Ingla

"99% of the program is Rosell is the same as what the club is already doing right now."

Jaume Ferrer


"The Camp Nou should have some 19.000 more seats."

Santiago Salvat


"I think it's possible that we will have four or five candidates at the final vote."

Alfons Godall


"The Boixos Nois had a more violent faction and one that wasn't violent. Not all Boixos Nois were what the people thought. There are good Boixos Nois who love the club and who support the club in the stadium, and who are now part of other groups. We will unite all the non-violent animation groups in one part of the stadium."

Sandro Rosell


"I don't have the natural leadership of Ferran Soriano but I do have the same way of thinking."

Marc Ingla

read more election quotes here

The Pic: Four (former) vice-presidents

Barcelona presidential candidate Marc Ingla has yesterday officially presented his candidacy for the presidency of FC Barcelona.

From left to right: former economic vice-president Ferran Soriano, first vice-president Alfons Godall, former marketing and sports vice-president Marc Ingla and former first vice-president Albert Vicens.

Laporta: "We stayed true to the Cruyff philosophy"

Barcelona president Joan Laporta gave an interview to Spanish newspaper Público.


There are elections coming up at the club. In June, at least two, maybe three, candidacies that have a chance to win and that come from your board will face each other. Why did those colleagues left?
That's life. One thing is clear, I have maintained a consistent line and I have defended a model that was built on some principles: 'more than a club' in the social area, the youth academy and Cruyff in the sports area and to not spend more than we receive and to add value to the assets in the economic area. The group of Sandro Rosell, who were the first to leave, were victims of the crisis of growth because of their high level of immaturity. They are spoiled and resentful people. Later, we had a different situation when facing the most difficult moment, that of the vote of no confidence, when although having overcome a group of colleagues left because of the high pressure. I understand the majority of them because it's dificult to deal with the pressure. But Soriano, Murtra and Vicens took advantage of that situation to try to occupy my place and I ended up feeling that they betrayed me. I've always defended my people above all and I cannot understand that people whom I had defended fiercely abandoned the ship at a key moment. In any case, when Sandro and his people left they predicted the apocalypse and one should just look at the trophies we have won. And regarding the second group who left, the model has continued even more strongly and we have achieved the best season in the history of Barça, and there is more to come. Those who are there now have been consistent with the values and principles that define the current model of the club. We have managed to build the model, to resist the difficulties and to take the right decisions so that Barça continues to live the best period in its history.

And when you leave, you will be able to ensure the continuity?
My current board colleagues are those who can do that best because they have never showed any vanity and have always been faithful to the model, which isn't the case of those who have left, although - I repeat - the first group that left isn't the same as the second.

We have the candidacy of Rosell, possibly that of Marc Ingla, another former vice-president who could get the support of Soriano, and that of Jaume Ferrer, who you now see as your successor. Will your model be reviewed?
Everyone has chances of winning. I talk about the continuity of the model and that can only be guaranteed by the candidacy that includes a wide majority of the members of this board, those who have arrived at this point. I have not yet heard none of the two groups you talk about explain what they will do, say what is their alternative. Rosell gave up because he thought that the Cruyff model in terms of football and the management model weren't right. He questioned Begiristain and Rijkaard, who won two league titles and one Champions League and who passed on to Guardiola. The consistent line is the one I have headed. When we decided to appoint Guardiola as coach, Soriano and Ingla wanted Mourinho. We chose Guardiola because that decision was more consistent with the style we wanted and not because of a matter of record, as was defended by those who wanted Mourinho. I don't know what Ingla will do, but I think he should present another model, because they didn't believe in the current one, his model was that of Mourinho. And Rosell nor Ingla shared the idea of the Unicef sponsorship, that in my opinion has been a highly successful decision and excellent for the image of the club. They should explain us what they will do because we have now built a model that has led us to be recognized as the best club in the world and changing that would be foolhardy.

Appointing Guardiola has been the best decision you have taken?
The best sporting decision has been to stay true to the Cruyff philosophy. And that has led us to keep Txiki as sports director which is given his whole record the best sports decision I have taken until now. Based upon his advice we have made decisions like the one to appoint Pep Guardiola as coach, who is doing amazingly well and who if he continues like this will become the best decision of all. But the best teams need continuity and therefore we need to keep on winning.

And that is not too much pressure for Guardiola?
No. Guardiola and the players have the pressure that is usual at Barça. And we don't just talk about winning titles but about being the best. You can take away pressure from the coach and the players when you have a president who makes decisions, who faces up, takes the lead and deals with the difficulties. Our responsibility is to do everything possible to leave a footprint and to do that you need calmness. The next president will find the best Barça in history and that is why I want this model to continue. As a club member I want the club to continue on this path of success and in my opinion this is only guaranteed by my colleagues of the current board, who have been able to make the right decisions even if they were unpopular, who have been able to resist in the most difficult moments and who have served Barça with enthusiasm and responsibility.

this was the first part of this interview. you will be able to read the second part on this blog in the coming days with laporta looking back at his seven years in office.

Read more:
Ferrer doesn't want Laporta to campaign
New developments regarding Ronaldinho commission
Laporta not considering to return in the future

interview: josep carles rius - ferran casas

Godall confirms he is part of Ingla candidacy

In an interview with Catalan sports paper El 9 Esportiu, Barcelona first vice-president Alfons Godall has confirmed the reports (read more here) that he and former vice-presidents Ferran Soriano and Albert Vicens will be part of the project of Barcelona presidential candidate Marc Ingla:

"It's very clear to us that there is a gap in the centre of the electoral scene that is worth filling. We are a project between a continuism because of the continuism, a bit driven by the outgoing president, and a change because of the change led by Sandro Rosell, driven by a certain spirit of revenge and grudge.

There are many fans who are waiting for a candidacy in which they can trust, a candidacy of experience and future. We are very motivated and we think we have a lot of chances to win. This is a team with a candidate. It will be a team project, contrary to other self-centred ego projects. My role? I want to actively take part and I'm at the disposal of Marc."

In an interview with Catalan sports paper Sport, Godall has said more or less the same.

Read more:
Ingla preparing his election campaign
Soriano, Vicens and maybe Godall in Ingla team
Godall doesn't believe in Ferrer-Rosell duel

Godall and Soriano will be vice-presidents Ingla

Catalan sports paper Sport claims that Barcelona first vice-president Alfons Godall will support the candidacy of Barcelona presidential candidate Marc Ingla and will become a vice-president if the latter is elected as president.

Former Barcelona vice-presidents Ferran Soriano and Albert Vicens, who left the board together with Ingla after the vote of no confidence in 2008, will also become vice-presidents if Ingla will be the next president.

Read more:
Soriano, Vicens and maybe Godall in Ingla team
Ingla confirms that he will run for president
Talks between Ingla and Godall

Soriano, Vicens and maybe Godall in Ingla team

Catalan television station TV3 claims that former Barcelona marketing and sports vice-president Marc Ingla will head a list that will include two former vice-presidents who left the club with him in 2008 after the vote of no confidence: Ferran Soriano and Albert Vicens.

Vicens, who reportedly thought at the start to stay out of the elections process (read more here), would have confirmed to Catalan sports paper El Mundo Deportivo that he is already actively taking part in the preparation of the campaign of Ingla. During a meeting on Sunday afternoon at the house of Ingla, some last details about the campaign would have been discussed.

Besides the two ex-directors, Ingla could also get the support of current vice-president Alfons Godall, who withdrew his own candidacy last month (read more here). Godall and Ingla would currently be holding talks on a collaboration and it might soon be officially announced that Godall will be part of the project.

Catalan sports paper El 9 Esportiu says that it's certain that Godall will join the candidacy of Ingla. Asked about the reports in the media, Godall nevertheless denied on his Facebook page that there would already be a deal: "At this moment, nothing has been confirmed... We will see how everything will evolve!"

Read more:
Talks between Ingla and Godall
Ingla preparing his election campaign
Soriano confirms support for Ingla

on the picture (from left to right): ferran soriano, albert vicens, marc ingla, alfons godall

Soriano confirms support for Ingla

Speaking to Spanish radio station Cadena Ser, former Barcelona economic vice-president Ferran Soriano has said that he would support a presidential candidacy of former Barcelona marketing and sports vice-president Marc Ingla, who left the club together with Soriano in 2008:

"Marc Ingla is excited with the idea of running for president. He is a colleague and a friend and I think as part of the group of directors both he and myself are among the fathers of the management of FC Barcelona in recent years.

The last seven years of club management have been positive, the club has moved forward and I think that it is right and good that all those who participated in one way or another are also present in the elections and I don't think this campaign should be reduced to 'all against one'.

If Marc Ingla decides to participate, I will help him the way I can, but I don't yet know how. I have already said that I would certainly take part in the campaign, but always in a positive way and I won't come out until the campaign starts."

Read more:
Ingla preparing his election campaign
Soriano awaiting election events
Ingla has decided to run for president

The Pundit: Lluis Simon on board of 2003

« With the pre-election marathon still going on I've remembered the first phrase that I heard Joaquim Maria Puyal [catalan journalist] say when asked in 2003 what he thought of Laporta and the new board that had just been elected, with the shiny Sandro Rosell, Ferran Soriano, Alfons Godall and Marc Ingla up front. "You can see they are very intelligent and, above all, very, very clever." He stopped for a second to clarify the message: "Maybe even too clever." »

Lluís Simon,
El 9 Esportiu

check more pundit talk

Ferrer: "Guardiola and Begiristian are untouchable"

Barcelona assets vice-president and presidential candidate Jaume Ferrer gave an interview to Catalan newspaper El Periódico.


All what has happened in the board is the main ballast of your candidacy?
I think it is the only ballast because, as for the rest, it has been proven that the club is working well with this sports and economic model we have developed and followed. Although they might be designed with good intentions, we do not know how things will go with alternative models. The only thing they can reproach us is what happened in the board. When in a group, people think and give their opinion there are debates, discussions and possible conflicts.

Godall has criticized you and announced a pact between you and Rosell because of political interests.
I do not know where he got the pact with Rosell, he must have been dreaming. It is impossible, because of the people in our teams and because both candidacies are already formed. If we wanted to make a pact, we would already have had time for it since 23 December.

Soriano could have a place in your candidacy?
I'm open for someone like Soriano to work together us. I have talked with him and he knows we would accept him. The doors are open for him, as for all those Barcelona fans who want to work for the good of the club. I want to end the divisions.

So Laporta is giving you the freedom to decide?
That should be very clear. The president does not want a puppet either. He knows that his term ends on 30 June and that the candidacy we announced on 23 December is led by me, and Laporta won't have anything to do nor will he intervene. I have been part of all the good and the bad things that happened over the past seven years. Of everything. Very good things have been done and that is our project for the future, but with the style of Jaume Ferrer.

Guardiola and Begiristian are untouchable?
For me, yes. We know that Txiki wants to quit but we will try to convince him to stay. With Guardiola we have spoken more than once, we are part of the same club, but you have to let him do his job now because he is focused on the competitions and on preparing the players.

The continuity of Guardiola seems to be guaranteed with this board while it could be put in question when someone else comes to power.
He already knows how we work, he feels comfortable and that is a guarantee for his continuity.

The issue of the delegate commission stays the same after having left upon a decision of Laporta?
The statutes say it should be formed by the president, a vice-president, the secretary and the treasurer. And that is the case for over a month now. I don't want to re-enter, I shouldn't have more rights than other candidates and know more about the day-to-day of the club.

this was the second and last part of this interview. you can read the first part here.

Read more:
Ferrer invites Godall and Sala to join him
Cartoon: With dramatic affect
Ferrer: "I know how do this"

interview: david torras and joan domènech

Ingla preparing his election campaign

Spanish news agency EFE claims that former Barcelona marketing and sports vice-president Marc Ingla has given a new impulse to his candidacy for the presidency for FC Barcelona during a dinner with members of his team on Thursday evening (read more here).

Ingla would at this moment be finalizing his board team, his campaign program and his logos. Although the exact date hasn't yet been chosen, the ex-director would soon publicly announce that he will run for president.

A source close to Ingla is quoted by the news agency as saying: "When he will make the step forward, the whole campaign machine will be up and running and with options to win the elections. It will be a winning bid."

Ingla would now also be holding talks with prominent people of the Catalan society and in the world of politics and economy to present them his project and to hear about their opinion on his plans.

Former Barcelona economic vice-president Ferran Soriano would for now be supporting Ingla in the background although it is reportedly not totally excluded that he could get a more important role in the future.

Read more:
Ingla has decided to run for president
Soriano will support candidacy Ingla
Poll result: Soriano should have run?

Soriano will support candidacy Ingla

Catalan sports paper El Mundo Deportivo claims that former Barcelona marketing and sports vice-president Marc Ingla will hold this evening a dinner with his team of collaborators in which the structure of his candidacy for the presidency of FC Barcelona will be finalized (read more here).

Former Barcelona economic vice-president Ferran Soriano, who decided not to run for president at the end of last month (read more here), would support Ingla during the campaign. This is confirmed by Catalan sports papers Sport and El 9 Esportiu, with the first claiming that Soriano might be part of the board team of Ingla.

El 9 Esportiu claims that Ingla has been working hard on the pre-candidacy of Soriano and would now feel capable of leading that project himself. Over the past months, Ingla would have held meetings with important Catalan businessman and reportedly thinks he has the support and the experience needed to run for president.

Read more:
Former vice-president Ingla will run for president
Soriano awaiting election events
Ingla has decided to run for president

Soriano awaiting election events

Asked if he could be part of a candidacy in the elections for president of FC Barcelona, former Barcelona economic vice-president Ferran Soriano has repeated in an interview with Catalan radio station Catalunya Ràdio that he cannot exclude the option:

"I haven't planned that, but anything can happen. What I can tell you is that it won't be me who will set up that candidacy.

Things are changing rapidly these days and a candidacy can be set up quickly. In the elections of 2003, I was campaign director and we presented the candidacy on 14 May, while the elections were on 15 June, so only one month before.

I have already said this several times but I promise that I will certainly participate. And participating means that at the least I will give my opinion because I have learnt a lot during my time at Barça and I might return to the club one day. Now, in six years or in twelve years.

Do I have a favourite candidate? No, because there aren't candidates yet, only pre-candidates and we need to wait and see until people explain what they want to do. The feeling I have is that people are waiting for an candidacy of tranquility, an option that isn't agressive, isn't rough but is calm, which is what Barça needs.

Maybe in 2003 the club needed something else, a kind of revolution, but now the club needs tranquility, normal people who don't want to be in the centre of the media attention, who don't criticize just to criticize. And I hope there will be a candidate that will deserve my support."

Read more:
Soriano confirms he won't run for president
Former vice-president Ingla will run for president
Candidacies carrying out polls

The Pundit: Dagoberto Escorcia on election face-offs

« If we could choose a showdown for the presidency of Barcelona, the most attractive one would have been that of Joan Laporta against Sandro Rosell. Given the fact that the current president could not take part, the second major electoral battle would have been that of Sandro Rosell against Ferran Soriano. To our misfortune, none of these face-offs will take place. They were interesting encounters, with enough incentives, full of intrigues and personal grudges. But it won't happen. »

Dagoberto Escorcia,
La Vanguardia

check more pundit talk