The owners of bars, pubs and restaurants neighbouring the Blaugrana stadium curse the day of FC Barcelona's move to Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys. The reason is the financial disaster for local businesses, which could have serious consequences for their future existence.

Empty street by Spotify Camp Nou - a symbol of sad reality

It used to be that the venues on Barcelona's Travessera de les Corts were bursting at the seams when Blaugrana played their matches at the venue built back in 1957. Now that the team has moved to Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys, it is in vain for one to find anyone wearing a blue-and-garnet jersey.

True, the Olympic stadium is about three kilometres from Camp Nou as the crow flies, but to get there one would have to spend at least 40 minutes on public transport or travel more than six kilometres by car. No wonder, then, that it no longer makes sense for fans to visit their favourite bars, which they used to enjoy so often before or during a game.

© Kuba Kowalski | Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys

In a good month, even €20,000 in revenue. What about now?

This state of affairs has a disastrous effect on the entrepreneurs concentrated in Barcelona's Les Corts district. Their story was told by Alex Pintanel of Relevo. What he heard exceeded his wildest expectations.

It didn't take long to find the first example of a sad change. One bar owner admitted in an interview with the journalist that the level of beer consumption in her establishment had dropped by around 80%. It is very bad. As if that wasn't enough, a lot of people now work remotely, so we are not able to compensate for this loss, she said bitterly. As she added, she does not even count on visitors turning up at the weekend, so the bar remains closed every Saturday and Sunday. See also: New Camp Nou straight out of the American dream set to save Barcelona finances

Souvenir shops are also in a deep crisis. With the closure of one of the biggest tourist attractions in the area, Travessera de les Corts pales in comparison to Las Ramblas. This was also noted by another interviewee of Alex Pintanel, an employee who could not imagine how his boss could cope with such a financial disaster.

© Alecaom | Spotify Camp Nou under construction

There is no work, tourists do not come here. We talked to the city authorities to lend us space near the stadium on Montjuïc Hill. It would have helped us through this difficult period of inactive Camp Nou. But nothing has been done. Nobody cares about what we write in those letters to the City Council. They probably read it, have a cup of coffee and then hide the letter in a drawer, said a disappointed worker.

The financial losses are difficult to estimate, not least because few people want to openly admit to their insufficient budgets. The other pub owner, however, was not holding out.  We cannot get to at least half of what we managed to earn previously. I hope that the work on the stadium will really only take a year and a half. I am already looking for a new job anyway, just in case, added the owner of another bar.

The vendors near Camp Nou are looking forward to a return to better times, but this, according to plans, is not expected until November 2024 at the earliest. The finishing touches will be done by the end of 2025.