Barcelona Resolves Wage Arrears Issue, Benefits Include Messi and Piqué

Barcelona recently disbursed around 16 million euros to resolve overdue salary payments.

Spanish news outlets reported on Saturday that FC Barcelona has officially settled the outstanding salaries owed to its former players, including former team legend Lionel Messi, now with Inter Miami, after years of financial struggles that heavily impacted the club.

According to "Sport" newspaper, Barcelona cleared the deferred payments that date back to the COVID-19 pandemic period. During this time, under President Josep Maria Bartomeu, the club was forced to postpone player wages due to a steep decline in revenue.

During that period, Barcelona faced a severe financial crisis that led to Messi's free transfer to Paris Saint-Germain in the summer of 2021. Despite the Argentine player’s desire to stay, the club's debts, exceeding a billion euros, made it impossible.

One of the notable issues the club faced was with defender Gerard Piqué. Reports suggested that Barcelona owed him approximately 50 million euros due to salary deferrals. Even though he later received a part of the amount, Piqué chose to retire and waive a significant portion of his dues.

The resolution of overdue salaries also benefited other players like Samuel Umtiti, who was receiving an annual salary of 20 million euros, along with Philippe Coutinho and several others.

According to the reports, the total amount recently paid by Barcelona is about 16 million euros, distributed among 20 first-team players, nine reserve team players, former coach Ronald Koeman, and three of his assistants.

Barcelona's management hopes this move will close a chapter of financial crises and set the stage for focusing on regaining the team’s shine both domestically and in Europe.