Barça’s Peru Pivot: Replacing a Canceled Miami Match with a Lucrative South American Stop

Background and Financial Context

Barcelona continues its push to offset the financial losses incurred after the cancellation of the planned friendly in Miami against Villarreal, as the Catalan club closes in on a December warm-up in Peru, with a lucrative offer nearing 8 million euros.

According to Mundo Deportivo, Barca's management is negotiating to finalize the Peru match, which is expected to bring in between 7 and 8 million euros. This financial opportunity is hard to pass up after the Miami revenue disappeared, and after another match planned in Libya was scrapped for security reasons, which could have yielded about 5 million.

Reports also note that Atlético Madrid agreed to play in Libya after Barcelona refused to participate.

This move sits within a broader effort to bolster the club's budget amid years of financial pressure.

The Peru friendly is seen as a practical option to recoup the lost revenue from overseas fixtures that never materialized as planned.

Leadership and Schedule Ahead

Last night, Barcelona president Joan Laporta met with the squad's leadership, coach Hans Flick, and sporting director Deco at the Joan Gamper Sports City, where he outlined Peru's offer and stressed the club's strong desire to accept given its financial value.

Laporta also used the gathering to lift players' spirits after the recent defeat to Real Madrid in the Clasico, underscoring that such opportunities can improve the club's finances without harming the sporting side.

Under the plan, the friendly would be staged after Barcelona's league clash with Villarreal and would be the last fixture of 2025; it was originally set to be played in Miami on December 20 before being canceled.

With Villarreal's game set to be the final before the winter break, Barca is coordinating with the Spanish players' union to determine the last day players can report under the winter break agreement.

Club bosses want to ensure the game aligns with rest-period rules ahead of the new year, as Barcelona is scheduled to face Espanyol on January 3 or 4, 2026 at Cornella-El Prat.

Old idea.

Notably, the idea of staging a La Liga match abroad isn't new; the first attempt dates back to 2018 when Relivent tried to arrange a Girona–Barcelona game in Miami, but FIFA blocked it at the time. Two more attempts followed for Villarreal–Atlético Madrid (2019-2020) and Barcelona–Atlético Madrid (2023-2024), none of which materialized.

La Liga was one step from turning Tebas's dream into reality, awaiting only CONCACAF approval to stage the match. The plan included a month-long Miami program with commercial activities across more than 4,000 square meters, but the project was postponed indefinitely after Relivent withdrew, especially as UEFA announced on October 6 that its approval for Villarreal–Barcelona in the United States and Milan–Como in Australia was “exceptional,” promising to safeguard the integrity of domestic competitions in the future.

In a full statement, La Liga said that after talks with the Miami organizer, they were informed of the cancellation. The league expressed deep regret that the project, which could have been a historic step in internationalizing Spanish football, will not proceed. Playing a competitive match outside their borders would have boosted the clubs' international presence and the standing of Spanish football in a strategic market like the United States.

The project would have generated about 5-6 million euros in revenue for both Barcelona and Villarreal; rejecting it reduces opportunities to grow Spanish football resources relative to the major leagues.

Meanwhile, Villarreal officials expressed anger at La Liga; Cadena COPE reported that club executives viewed the league as poorly organized and lacking planning.

Marcelino García Toral, Villarreal's coach, commented after yesterday's Champions League match against Manchester City that it was improper for La Liga to issue a statement while they were playing.

Video cameras captured club president Fernando Roig furious on the phone at the end of the game, underscoring the depth of frustration that engulfed the Yellow Submarine's management after the Miami project collapsed.

Punchline 1: If Barca’s finances keep needing a boost, maybe they should start selling replays of pre-season press conferences as a premium channel. Punchline 2: In the budget world, it’s not about goals scored, it’s about dollars earned—some days the scoreboard just reads: more zeros, please.