Joan Laporta secured re-election as FC Barcelona president, defeating Victor Font with around two-thirds of the votes cast by club members. Despite a recent controversy involving Lionel Messi, Laporta's campaign prevailed convincingly. He promised that the coming years would be the best in members' lives.
Joan Laporta was re-elected as president of FC Barcelona on Sunday, winning a landslide victory over challenger Victor Font. Of the 48,480 votes cast by Barca members, Laporta claimed approximately two-thirds, marking his return to a position he has held for a total of 12 years across two previous spells, from 2003 to 2010 and since 2020. After the result, Laporta expressed gratitude, stating: “First of all, I want to dedicate a few words of gratitude to this wonderful club we have. It’s great to see that members can still choose who represents us. This passion is a joy, it makes the club special, so thanks to Barça and all the members that voted today in a display of democracy.” He added: “The result itself is conclusive and it gives us a lot of strength – so much strength that it will make us unstoppable. We will keep defending Barcelona against everything and everyone. The upcoming years will be thrilling. They will be the best of our lives.” Laporta's campaign faced a potential setback last week when former coach Xavi claimed that the 63-year-old had vetoed a proposed return for Lionel Messi to Camp Nou in 2023. However, this row had little impact on the ballot outcome. During his first term, Laporta appointed Pep Guardiola as coach, ushering in a successful era. Since returning in 2020, he has addressed financial challenges and overseen a Camp Nou rebuild. On the pitch, successes include two La Liga titles for the men's team and three successive Champions League wins for the women's side. Yesterday, Barcelona's 5-2 win over Sevilla kept them four points clear of Real Madrid at the top of the men's La Liga table.
