Barcelona must settle £50m Premier League transfer debt to avoid fresh financial crash

Feargal Brennan

Barcelona must settle £50m Premier League transfer debt to avoid fresh financial crash image

Foto: @raphinha

Barcelona could be on course for more financial chaos in 2026.

The La Liga champions have been mired in fiscal issues in recent years and their start to the 2025/26 season was dominated by registration problems.

Club captain Marc-Andre ter Stegen's injury provided an unorthodox solution as his 'salary space' was used to register summer signing Joan Garcia.

However, a host of sales and loan exits were needed to wrap up other contract extensions and complete the final paperwork on loanee Marcus Rashford in Catalonia.

Hansi Flick is reportedly keen on keeping Rashford beyond the end of next season, but Manchester United will demand in the region of £30m [$40m] to activate a purchase option.

That will require yet more financial manoeuvring from the Barcelona hierarchy and another bill needs to be settled before purchases are completed.

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As per reports from talkSPORT, Barcelona still owe several clubs sizable sums, based on deferred transfer payments from previous seasons.

Barcelona have informed their members of a £138m [$184m] transfer excess that must be settled by the end of the 2025/26 season with £121m [$161m] the minimum payment required to avoid major budget issues.

The new budget has been approved, with the caveat of paying off old debts, and the main focus is on the £130m [$173m] spent in the 2022 summer transfer with less than half actually paid.

Jules Kounde FC Barcelona

Estimates indicate £22m [$30m] is owed to Sevilla over the Jules Kounde transfer and £8.5m [$11m] to Bayern Munich over the deal to sign Robert Lewandowski.

The biggest bill that could fall on Deco's desk relates to the Premier League, with Leeds United and Manchester City owed money from the respective Raphinha and Ferran Torres exits - which with interest added tops £50m [$67m].

Barcelona are expected to continue their policy of paying off portions of each historic transfer deal as they work towards reaching the desired total.

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Staff Writer