BARCELONA (AFP) – Barcelona against Real Madrid is a rivalry that goes back 116 years, to a pitch drenched in horse manure and spectators that cheered players falling over as much as them scoring a goal.
Barca won that first meeting in May 1902, 3-1, but more than a century on the landscape looks rather different.
Two of the world’s greatest clubs are engaged in a battle off the pitch just as fierce: the race to one billion euros.
This autumn, their presidents, Josep Maria Bartomeu of Barcelona and Florentino Perez of Madrid, each made clear their desperation to cross the line first.
The revenue milestone is not just financial, it is a mark of status, proof of success, another notch in the debate about which club is bigger.
In five years, Madrid’s turnover has soared from 521 million euros to a projected 752 million euros for the 2018/19 season. Barca pocketed 490 million euros five years ago. This season they expect to make 960 million. ‘’Either club could be the first one to do this,’’ Esteve Calzada, Barcelona’s marketing director between 2002 and 2007, and now boss of Prime Time Sport group, told AFP this week.
But there is still work to do. ‘’It will take a few more years unless either club sells a player before then for 400 million euros,’’ said Placido Rodriguez Guerrero, professor at the University of Oviedo and researcher in sports economics.
Success on the pitch counts for a lot. Winning trophies swells the sums made from broadcasting rights and activates pre-agreed bonuses.
Barcelona will receive from their shirt sponsor Rakuten an extra 1.5 million euros if they win La Liga this season and another 5 million euros if they triumph in the Champions League.
The clubs can target global stars that boost visibility and merchandise sales, by the sheer weight of their talent and profile.
During the 2000s, it was a policy that made its name in Madrid, as the likes of David Beckham, Zinedine Zidane and Luis Figo were all signed for hefty fees. In recent years, the club has reined in its spending.
