Barcelona, February 8 (BNA): Barcelona CEO Ferran Riverter submitted his resignation today, Tuesday, amid the club’s negotiations over a new sponsorship deal with Spotif.
Barcelona said Riverter told club president Joan Laporta that he had to leave for “personal and family reasons,” according to the Associated Press.
Riverer is leaving less than a year since taking office in July 2021 with the responsibility of leading the club’s restructuring project through a strategic plan until 2026.
Riverter’s resignation comes as the Catalan club is trying to find a new sponsor to replace Rakuten when the current deal expires at the end of the season.
The new agreement is seen as fundamental to the club, which has been slowly restructuring its finances after collecting huge debts due to the coronavirus pandemic and mismanagement by former officials. Barcelona couldn’t keep Lionel Messi after last season due to his financial struggles.
Spanish newspaper La Vanguardia said Riverer’s departure was partly due to inconsistencies in negotiations with Spotify, and due to previous disagreements with President Laporta.
Spanish media said a deal with Spotify was imminent but the club denied it, saying talks with other brands were still ongoing.
The deal with Spotify could reportedly be worth 280 million euros ($320 million) over three years, and would include key jersey sponsorship and ownership rights to the Camp Nou stadium.
Barcelona said Riverter was behind achievements such as “debt restructuring, payroll cuts, agreements with new partners, and others”.
Riverter said he accepted Laporta’s invitation to be CEO last year, shortly after returning to Barcelona from Germany for family reasons.
“Personally I put a lot of effort and dedication during these months, but now I want to focus on why I’m coming back to Barcelona, which is to spend more time on personal and family projects,” he said.
“These months have been filled with enthusiasm and I thank the president for his confidence and, above all, his enthusiasm and ability to lead which means that FC Barcelona now has a first-class executive team capable of re-establishing Barcelona as a world leader.”
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