BARCELONA: Beyond courting and developing some of the world’s top talent, Barcelona have also based their success on a strong home advantage thanks to Europe’s largest soccer stadium.
That will be different this season, when the team play at a smaller, less accessible stadium while their 99,000-seat Camp Nou undergoes a complete facelift that won’t be finished for at least three years.
Barcelona will spend their time away from Camp Nou at the Lluis Companys Olympic Stadium, which can hold 49,000 people. That will surely translate to a quieter, less intimidating atmosphere for rivals, as well as less revenue for a club still battling severe financial problems.
Some 35,000 people turned out for Barcelona’s first game at their temporary home on Tuesday, against Tottenham in a friendly that the club uses to present its team for the upcoming campaign.