Barcelona Nears December Morocco Friendly to Boost Finances — A Leverage Move or a Logistics Test

Overview

Barcelona is nearing a December friendly in Morocco, part of its strategy to secure fresh revenue streams and bolster its financial position through high-profile exhibitions that could pad the club’s treasury. According to Spanish outlet Mundo Deportivo, Barca’s management is evaluating two offers to play friendlies after their final official match of 2025, which would be against Villarreal, with bids coming from Peru and Morocco respectively.

Last summer, the Catalan side received an enticing proposal to play in Casablanca on July 20, ahead of its Asian tour in South Korea and Japan, but the idea was shelved at the time. However, with December looming, Moroccan parties have shown renewed interest in hosting the Spanish giants.

Barça’s leadership is using these matches to seek significant financial gains and ease economic pressures, as lucrative friendlies are among the club’s preferred mechanisms to boost revenue, especially in windows with no official fixtures.

Financial Angles and Feasibility

At present, with two offers on the table—Morocco and Peru—the board is expected to reach a final decision soon. Sources cited by the newspaper suggest the Moroccan option is more realistic logistically, given the short distance between Barcelona and Morocco, which would allow the team to travel and return in under 24 hours, potentially departing in the morning and coming back the same evening after the game.

By contrast, the longer haul to Peru’s capital Lima would complicate travel ahead of Christmas, especially since Barça has a Spanish league match against Espanyol scheduled for January 3 or 4, 2026, shrinking the available rest window mandated by the Spanish players’ union.

Barça had already engaged with official bodies such as La Liga, the Spanish Football Federation, and the Spanish Players’ Association to gauge the feasibility of a December friendly under winter-break regulations for players. Mundo Deportivo also notes the club’s inclination to pursue both offers due to their substantial financial value; the Peru fixture is estimated at 7–8 million euros, with a future 2026 date if this year proves impractical.

Context and Historical Attempts

There had been talk of moving the Villarreal match to Miami last season, but the idea ran into heavy domestic opposition and was ultimately scrapped. Barça is keen to secure a sizeable payoff from friendlies as a way to offset what would have flowed from a Miami engagement, illustrating how global exhibitions are pursued to offset domestic revenue gaps.

Many have noted that this is far from a new ambition. The notion of La Liga matches abroad is not novel; the first attempt traces back to 2018 when Relivent attempted Girona–Barcelona in Miami, which FIFA blocked at the time. Two more attempts followed for Villarreal–Atlético Madrid (2019–2020) and Barcelona–Atlético Madrid (2023–2024), but none materialized.

This time, La Liga President Javier Tebas seemed “one step away” from a breakthrough, awaiting only CONCACAF’s approval to stage the game. The plan had included a month-long Miami promotional presence spanning over 4,000 square meters, but Relivent withdrew and the project was postponed indefinitely after UEFA characterized related proposals as exceptional and vowed to protect the integrity of national competitions. La Liga’s official statement expressed disappointment that the project would not proceed, while reiterating commitment to growing Spanish football globally and maintaining a competitive, transparent framework for clubs and fans alike.

The league also highlighted potential revenues of about 5–6 million euros per club if the plan had gone ahead, emphasizing that rejecting the project limits the development of Spanish football resources when compared with the financial might of other top leagues. Inside Villarreal, frustration simmered as Cadena COPE reported that club officials viewed the league’s handling as disorganized. Coach Marcelino García Toral publicly reacted to the timing of a league statement during a Champions League match against Manchester City, calling it inappropriate to issue a statement mid-game. Meanwhile, footage showed Villarreal’s president Fernando Roig visibly upset on the phone after the game, underscoring the disappointment surrounding the Miami setback.

In short, Barça’s December Morocco proposal is less about a mere exhibition and more about a strategic financial wedge—one that could set a precedent for international tours while testing logistics, rest schedules, and national league rules. If the Moroccan option lands, it could become a notable case study in balancing income generation with sporting integrity and travel practicality.

Old ideas die hard, and this one’s been circling the pitch for years. If there’s a punchline here, it’s that football finance is sometimes more dramatic than the drama on the pitch—though both certainly require a steady hand with the clock and a sense of humor when the jet lag hits. And if Barca’s board ever needs a quick audit, they can always count on this: even a 24-hour trip doesn’t fix a leaky treasury without a good plan and a good sponsor. Sniper-level precision with budgets, please: aim for a balance sheet that actually stays balanced.