The La Liga champions will host Valencia at the 6,000-capacity stadium on Sunday
Barcelona will play their first La Liga home match of the season at the Estadi Johan Cruyff after failing to secure the necessary permits to reopen the Camp Nou.
The club had hoped to welcome Valencia on 14 September at their redeveloped stadium with a reduced capacity of around 27,000. However, city authorities did not grant the First Occupancy Licence required for fans to return, after a final inspection of the ongoing works gave an unsatisfactory verdict.
As a result, the fixture will be staged at the Johan Cruyff Stadium, which holds just 6,000 spectators. It will be the second time in recent months Barcelona have used the ground, following the Joan Gamper Trophy match against Como played at the stadium in August.
The Olympic Stadium at Montjuic is the club’s main alternative to Camp Nou, but the venue will host a Post Malone concert two days before the game and the pitch will not be ready for a football match.
La Liga officials inspected the Johan Cruyff venue last week and requested adjustments to meet competition standards, including improved broadcast infrastructure and better VAR camera positions. Club staff have been working to implement the changes, with work still ongoing in the stands this week, according to Sport.
Barcelona will attempt to soften the financial impact of the reduced capacity by installing temporary VIP areas, but the decision still represents a significant hit compared with revenue that could have been generated at a partially open Camp Nou or at Montjuic.
