They announced the cancellation of the friendly, Barcelona will travel to Japan

football

Express newspaper
24/07/2025 14:41

Barcelona will travel to Japan after all, despite announcing otherwise just 17 hours ago. The Blaugrana have cancelled their friendly against Vissel Kobe, scheduled for Sunday, but it looks like it could go ahead anyway.

The Catalan team had announced that they would not travel to Japan after the organiser had not paid the amount due for the friendly. This was followed by a statement from promoter D-Drive, who accused Japanese subcontractor Yasuda of fraud and non-payment, supporting Barcelona in legal action.

Barcelona are said to be looking for another opponent for Sunday before travelling to South Korea, with Hansi Flick having contacted some of his contacts in Germany. Late on Wednesday evening, vice-president Rafa Yuste told Jijantes (via MD) that they would not be travelling, as there had been a lack of respect.

“We are working to go to Korea. We will not go to Japan because they have not respected the club; we protect the interests of the club. There are people who do not respect the agreements.” — said Yuste.

Despite the announcement, Vissel Kobe continued to sell tickets for Sunday’s match.

The same source has now confirmed that the match will still take place. Jijantes confirmed the friendly, while Sport explains that Rakuten, the former main sponsor of Barcelona’s shirts, has agreed to pay the amount missing from the agreement — D-Drive had accused Yasuda of not paying the fee. Rakuten was the company contracted to distribute the tickets.

Barcelona players had received a short message shortly before Wednesday’s announcement telling them they would not be travelling to Kobe. The Catalan delegation will now board the plane on Thursday or Friday morning, local time.