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Barcelona's pre-season this year is, once again, expected to be dominated by transfer talk. Although the Blaugrana have a league title to celebrate, all of the focus is on how they can scale the heights of European and global football again, especially after missing out on Lionel Messi.
Amid a financial situation that hasn't improved much, a move to a smaller stadium while their current one is being renovated, and a squad that will need additions, it could be a pivotal summer in manager Xavi's system. Get it right, and Barca could be set up for a new era of success. Get it wrong, and they could fall behind Real Madrid once again.
Details as to how, exactly, this pre-season will look are sparse, with more concrete information sure to come out over the next few weeks and months. Here, GOAL has everything you need to know about Barcelona's pre-season tour, including info on how to buy tickets, where to find games, squad details, and more.
Xavi's side didn't have much of a rest after concluding their title-winning season. The Blaugrana beat Andres Iniesta's Vissel Kobe 2-0 at the Japan National Stadium on June 6, just 48 hours after their final La Liga contest. The Blaugrana are once again returning to the USA for a preseason tour. And while last year's slate focused on fixtures on the east coast, this summer will focus on fixtures out west. The Bluagrana are expected to set up a west coast base camp before playing four major European clubs in just under two weeks.
Barcelona open their tour with a fixture against Italian giants Juventus on July 22 in Santa Clara, California. They will then travel south to SoFi stadium in Los Angeles to take on Arsenal on July 26. Next up is the highlight, a US-based Clasico against arch-rivals Real Madrid, which will be held on July 29 in Arlington, Texas, home of the Dallas Cowboys. They will round things off with a contest against Champions League semi-finalists AC Milan in Las Vegas on August 1. But there's more football to be played once they return home. The annual Joan Gamper match will be played at some point before the season kicks off. Neither the opponent nor location for the fixture has been revealed, with Camp Nou unavailable due to extensive renovations. The busy slate will also see the Blaugrana debut their 2023-24 kits.
Broadcasters for Barcelona's pre-season fixtures have not yet been confirmed. In the past, games have also been made available on Barcelona's in-house media network. However, the club is getting rid of that service on June 30. How, exactly, that impacts the accessibility of pre-season fixtures remains to be seen. Until then, there is sure to be content on Barca's official YouTube channel. In the US, Fox Sports 2 and Fubo TV have also previously been used. The game against Arsenal is expected to be available to stream live on the official Arsenal website.
The Blaugrana's pre-season squad should feature many of the same faces from last term's La Liga-winning side. Robert Lewandowski, Pedri, Gavi and Ousmane Dembele should be ready to go by early July.
Barcelona will kick off their competitive campaign on August 13 when they visit Getafe in La Liga. A week later they will play their first competitive match of the season at Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys - their temporary home while Camp Nou is renovated.
Source: goal.com
