Barcelona will move out of their Nou Camp home for the 2023-24 season while the stadium is redeveloped.
The Spanish club have received a permit from their city council for the renovation and work will start in June.
They will be able to play at an almost full-capacity Nou Camp next season but will relocate to the Olympic Stadium in Montjuic for the following campaign.
Barcelona will return home in 2024-25 with capacity at 50% and work is set to be completed in the 2025-26 season.
“Demolition any earlier would have meant having to play the 2022-23 season with just 50% of capacity,” said Barcelona president Joan Laporta.
“Out of prudence and to minimise risks and protect next season’s income, we will maintain a capacity of practically 100% and proceed to demolish the third tier when we go to Montjuic.”
Barcelona and their city council are working on the details of the move to the Olympic Stadium in Montjuic, which hosted the 1992 Olympics and was the former home of city rivals Espanyol.
Meanwhile, Spain have been thrown out of the 2023 Rugby World Cup for fielding an ineligible player during the qualifying stages and will be replaced by Romania, World Rugby announced on Thursday.
“Subject to Spain’s right of appeal, the 10-point deduction applied to the Rugby World Cup 2023 qualification table means that Romania will qualify as Europe 2 into Pool B replacing Spain,” read the statement.
Portugal — who Spain beat to seal their place in the global showpiece in France next year – replace Romania in the final qualification tournament taking place in November 2022.
“Spain has a right of appeal within 14 days of the date of the full written decision of the committee,” read the statement.
According to Spanish media in March, the player under investigation was South African-born prop Gavin van den Berg, who has been playing in Spain since 2018.
He played twice against the Netherlands, in 2020 and 2021, in qualifiers, but he may not seemingly have served the three years of residency needed to become eligible under World Rugby rules.
Spain, Romania and Belgium were all sanctioned in 2018 for having fielded ineligible players, opening the way for Russia to qualify for the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan.
Barcelona to move from Nou Camp during renovation
