Barcelona have officially scrapped their plan to return to the revamped Camp Nou in August, pushing back the long-awaited reopening of their iconic stadium.
The club had been aiming to play a friendly match on 10 August their first fixture at Camp Nou in two years following extensive renovation work. However, in a statement released on Friday, Barcelona cited difficulties in obtaining the required partial occupancy licence as the reason behind the decision.
“Due to the scale of the work completed, it has not been possible to meet all the regulatory requirements necessary to obtain the initial occupancy licence,” read the club statement. “Despite the club’s efforts to open Spotify Camp Nou in phases, the first match back has been suspended.”
The planned friendly reportedly against Italian side Como will now be played at the Johan Cruyff Stadium, located adjacent to Barça’s training complex.
The club now expects the first match at Camp Nou to be their La Liga fixture against Valencia, scheduled for either 13 or 14 September. Barcelona will play their opening three league games away from home. However, no firm guarantee has been given that the stadium will be ready by mid-September, with the possibility of further delays, including for potential home fixtures in the Champions League.
Barcelona had initially hoped to return to Camp Nou in November 2024 to coincide with the club’s 125th anniversary. That target has since shifted multiple times.
The ongoing redevelopment – estimated to cost €1.5 billion – will eventually expand the stadium’s capacity to 105,000. Until the works are fully completed, currently projected for next summer, the stadium will operate at a reduced capacity of around 60,000.
Barcelona have been playing their home fixtures at the Olympic Stadium on Montjuïc hill for the past two seasons during the construction period.