August 2016: The newly-proclaimed state of Catalonia has separated completely from Spain, whose flags no longer fly anywhere in the city of Barcelona except on the flagstaff of the Spanish Embassy. The sports press is full of news about the recent “friendly” international between the Catalan and Spanish national teams, the first in history, which despite a few ugly incidents outside the stadium passed off without a hitch. A goalless draw was seen by many as a fitting result to symbolise the relations between Spain and the nascent Catalan Republic. And of course the main story for sportswriters, as always, is FC Barcelona – Barça – as they prepare for a new season… playing against Real … [Read more...] about The Pep Paradox
Laporta
Laporta: first we take Barcelona
What do you do after making one of the world’s most successful football clubs even more successful? If you’re outgoing Barcelona president Joan Laporta, you think about going into politics. Catalan politics. Bound by the football club’s two-terms-only rule, the 47-year-old will be out of a job by June 30, by which time Barcelona’s 100,000 members must elect a new president. Press reports suggest that Laporta will announce his intention to run in the regional elections due in Catalonia this autumn. Over the last year, his political ambitions have gradually taken shape. He briefly flirted with the two main nationalist groupings, the Catalan Republican Left (ERC), and the conservative … [Read more...] about Laporta: first we take Barcelona