Countdown for the rain to stop being a problem at the Camp Nou

BarcelonaThe remodeling of the Spotify Camp Nou has been a masterclass for many people who are not accustomed to architectural concepts. Few works of this magnitude, not even public ones, have had such exhaustive monitoring. Joan Laporta's board has experienced them with a mixture of passion and nervousness. At the club, they are perfectly aware of the importance of having a state-of-the-art stadium that is capable of giving a boost to the entity's income. At the same time, they know that the delays and cost overruns have strained the economy to the limit with a huge debt. For this reason, some decisions have been made by prioritizing the income statement over the recommendations of some architects. At the club, which has already been using the stadium again for almost a year –at 60% capacity–, and which will probably reopen the museum next month, they are beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel, although the last obstacle to claim victory is still missing.

Monday was a great day for the Espai Barça work team. After many weeks of waiting, the workers were able to place the last piece of the compression ring. This crown, with a perimeter of 830 meters, is a key element, since it will be the support point for the roof that will be installed starting next summer. This delay had given rise to many speculations, but the reality is that, if it had not been possible to complete until now, it was due to a climatic issue: with the extreme temperatures of the summer, the ring had expanded one centimeter per degree Celsius. With the normalization of the thermometer, the last piece "went in like silk," they say from Espai Barça.

The ring, in any case, arrives later than what had been initially projected and this has been due to the general problems of the Camp Nou reform, with many unforeseen events that were not counted on and the consequent generalized delays in the reopening. Delays that also affect the third tier, which will finally not be opened to the public until a year and three months from now. When Barça celebrated the return to the stadium, in November 2025, the goal was set to reopen the third tier in August 2026, with the start of the new season. A few months later it was already said that it would be the first quarter of 2027 and finally it has been left for next year, when returning from the forced exile in Montjuïc to carry out the installation of the roof.

"We have calculated that we could open in March or April, but only the seats on the side. So the cost-benefit difference does not compensate us. It would be setting everything up just to take it all down again after three games," explains an authorized voice from the offices. Therefore, no chairs will be installed there, contrary to what had been said a few months ago. Once again, the income statement has had a significant weight in this decision, because the club had to prioritize efforts and has focused on the double ring of VIP boxes "for financial reasons". In any case, only a small part can be opened, the one on the side. The rest will be available with the return to the stadium in January 2028. In the same way that phase 1 (first and second tiers) was divided into sub-phases, the same has been done with phase 2. Barça has chosen to open the museum and the first team dressing room imminently. Then, the VIP area of the side. And, finally, the entire third tier, which will also include the last four rows of the second tier, some seats that, also for bureaucratic reasons, cannot yet be commercialized.

Everything you need to keep in mind before installing the 'big lift'

Carrying out the big lift is an engineering feat that makes the eyes of Lluís Moya shine, one of the most renowned architects in structural calculation, who has been in charge of the Camp Nou remodeling as part of the team led by Joan Sentelles, head of operations. In their office, they have a small model on a cork board that helps explain what the process of raising the roof will be like. It will be done with tensegrity technology, which has already been applied in stadiums like the Metropolitano or the Nou Mestalla, with the difference that the one at Camp Nou will be the largest roof in the world. The anglicism big lift refers to the lifting process of the structure, which will have been assembled on the pitch beforehand and will be put in place using massive cables that will be gradually tensioned.

This process will be long because first, 18,000 seats from the first and second tiers will need to be dismantled to make room for the cables that will then be tensioned. The bicycle wheel—the name by which the inner oval is known—will be assembled in pieces on the pitch and then raised. The work will last between four and five months, and afterwards, all the seats will have to be reinstalled and the pitch replaced, as it will—logically—be completely damaged. The positive part is that, in the meantime, the museum can still be visited and tours of the inside of the stadium can continue. Furthermore, the membrane that will cover it, which has been commissioned to a company from Lleida, can be installed at the same time that matches are being played. This final process will last between six and nine months.

At Barça, this whole process is being experienced with more tranquility since the assembly approved the credit expansion for the Espai Barça up to 1.8 billion, and they have certification that Limak has already completed 99% of the roof contracting. But what they will not be able to cut are the deadlines. Since playing at Montjuïc is an economic ruin, the club had imagined they could return to Camp Nou in November 2027. But the date is not realistic and in the offices, they are talking about January 2028. It is also the date they have entered into the budgets. Apart from the imponderables that may arise with the roof, the technicians will have work to do to legalize the 103,000 square meters of new construction. That is to say: permits and inspections before receiving the approval of the Barcelona City Council and the Fire Department.

The last doubt refers to when the total capacity can be recovered. The budget for the 2027-28 season foresees a return with 92,000 spectators, still far from the 104,000 that the finished Camp Nou will have. This is because it is not guaranteed that some services, such as the press area or the security booths, can be placed in their final location due to lack of time. Therefore, it is most likely that they will remain in their current space in the second tier, and that it will not be until the summer of 2028 that the final move will take place. In this way, the 2028-29 season will already debut "with the stadium finished". The same season that the stadium will host the Champions League final. Only time will tell if the final celebration will be complete.