"Keep believing in it": the big party of a team that they had given up for dead

Oslo“After receiving criticism all year, I hope they praise us a little now, as it's our turn. We are doing a very good job”. That’s how emphatically Cata Coll spoke after winning the Champions League final in Oslo (4-0). Barça once again touched the sky in Norway after a complicated season marked by criticism and doubts. After the triumph, it was time to celebrate. The night in Oslo was long. "We celebrated it as it should be," said the young Clara Serrajordi, from La Masia, when she arrived in Barcelona, where thousands of people were waiting on a stage on Avinguda de Maria Cristina despite the heatwave, which caused some scares among those present. This was not the case for Joan Laporta, who ended up on stage embracing Alexia Putellas while the members of the group Figa Flawas sang euphorically.

Thousands of fans welcomed the players. One of the most acclaimed, Alexia Putellas. "There is only one queen, Alexia Putellas," sang Marta Torrejón. The captain, chosen as the best player of this edition of the Champions League, recalled that this season they have filled the Spotify Camp Nou twice. "I want to thank the president and the board of directors for the work they have done. We love you all," she said while the fans chanted "Don't leave." She didn't say anything about her future, although she ended up showing her complicity with Laporta when the music took over the stage at the end of an event that concluded with the acting president, Rafa Yuste, losing his voice singing the club's anthem. Kika Nazareth accompanied him and proved she knew the lyrics. In fact, the Portuguese player has been one of the queens of the party and ended up singing a Rosalía song.

The party was the cherry on top after a complicated season. Pere Romeu's team –starting its second year at the helm of the project– kicked off the 2025-26 season with the bitter taste of defeat in Lisbon against Arsenal and the departure of players like Ingrid Engen, Fridolina Rolfö, and Jana Fernández, among others. The Catalan coach was heavily questioned during his first season. Good matches –like the tie against Chelsea in the semi-finals– were interspersed with other encounters where the team's best version was still far off. Now that the season has ended, Romeu is a happy man. "I thank the club for allowing a ‘culer’ like me to be the coach –he said–. Don't take for granted everything this team does. Winning is very difficult, and this team and this coaching staff will bring us a lot of joy. Keep believing in this team. Thank you all for being here in this heat. I am convinced that we are the best team in the world, but there is one thing that sets us apart, and that is that we have the best fans in the world. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your support and your energy," he added during the Maria Cristina party, where he was seen to be emotional.

At the start of the season, the squad generated doubts. Three significant departures and only one signing, Laia Aleixandri, forced the promotion of two players from the reserve team, Clara Serrajordi and Aïcha Camara, to complete a short but reliable squad to face a new demanding season in the elite. Doubts about whether the team would manage to compete in the Champions League were present from the very beginning, but Barça struck the first blow right at the start, with a 7-1 thrashing against Bayern Munich, who ended up being semi-finalists in the competition.

The injuries have also not helped over these months. Aitana Bonmatí and Laia Aleixandri have missed half a season due to long-term injuries. The midfielder from Sant Pere de Ribes rejoined for the return leg of the Champions League semi-finals at the Camp Nou after five months out, and Aleixandri tore her cruciate ligament in February at the Estadi Alfredo Di Stéfano. Patri Guijarro and Salma Paralluelo also spent three months away from the pitch, and Mapi León missed two months of competition.

“The motivation of this team is not occasional, it is constant because during the season we have had absences of very important players who have forced footballers who did not expect it to step forward. That unites you as a team and has made us mentally stronger”, valued Romeu. The most obvious example is that of Clara Serrajordi, who at just 18 years old was a starter against Olympique de Lyon. The midfielder debuted a year ago against Athletic Club in the League, but has already earned a place among the world's best players. "I still can't quite believe everything I'm experiencing," she explained.

"Money isn't everything"

A demonstration that in football, the one who can invest more does not always win. Barça has managed to reinvent itself, with a clear commitment from the sports management to sign young talents –Carolina Ferrera, Liv Pennock, Nikoline Nielsen, or Julia Torres– with potential for the first team. “Money isn't everything, and we've proven it. We are privileged to have La Masia, they are incredible,” Cata Coll responded emphatically, referring to Michele Kang's project. The South Korean businesswoman –owner of Lyon and London City– incorporated former Barça players Ingrid Engen, Jana Fernández, Lucía Corrales, and Jonatan Giráldez last summer and is now looking to bring Alexia Putellas and Mapi León to England. "You'll see," the Barça captain responded when asked about her future at Barça.

Barça has responded to criticism in the best way they know how: on the pitch. The Blaugrana team has consolidated the change of cycle – six consecutive finals and three Champions League titles in the last four years – and has beaten Olympique Lyonnais for the second time in their history. "The doubts that have been generated have been a motivation for us, to show that we are still good. There has been a lack of money everywhere, but, like the boys, we have managed to maintain a high level thanks to years of good work from La Masia," stated Graham Hansen.

A team that is ambitious and already thinking about winning more titles. With the Champions League, the League, the Cup, and the Super Cup in their trophy cabinet, all that remains is to think about next season. "When I see the hard daily work, I know the team will want to be in the final next year," assures Pajor. Pere Romeu also called for confidence in this project. With hard work and sacrifice, results come, and this is the lesson that Barcelona and Pere Romeu gave to the whole world on May 23, 2026, in Oslo. The challenge is to repeat a celebration like this in a year's time, which ended with players and management singing under the Barcelona sun.