Two weeks before the historic match between Catalonia and Palestine, whose proceeds are intended to support the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip, ticket sales still have not started, and organisers warn that the match may be moved to a smaller stadium outside Barcelona.

Pressure on Barcelona authorities and the Catalan federation

The decision on the venue is still pending. Organisations grouped around the Act x Palestine campaign stress that Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys meets all sporting, logistical and symbolic requirements to host a match of this scale. The stadium can accommodate 55,000 spectators, it is well connected with the entire Barcelona metropolitan area, and its significance as a historic and internationally recognised space of solidarity — is, as organisers emphasise, irreplaceable.

Luca Gervasoni, spokesperson of Act x Palestine in Catalonia, states: We want to announce that the match will be played at the Olympic Stadium; it is a matter of political will. He also points out that the event not only has a sporting dimension, but also represents an act of opposition to the genocide being committed by Israel in the Gaza Strip and against the Palestinian people.

According to Catalan media, alternative venues are being considered – including Estadi Nova Creu Alta in Sabadell, which holds around 11,000 spectators. Other possibilities include Nou Estadi de Tarragona. One of the issues appears to be financial, including the requirement to pay a deposit in order to play at Montjuïc.

© Stadionvoyeur

No tickets and no official confirmation

The official website of Barcelona City Council lists the match with date and time. However, ticket sales have not started and there is no call to participate. Organisers highlight that no promotional actions have been undertaken. For this reason, a pre-reservation process was launched to demonstrate the real interest of supporters.

Within the first 24 hours, 13,300 pre-reservations were recorded. Organisers stress that these numbers prove that Estadi Olímpic can be filled — and that moving the match to a smaller venue would be unjustified.

Contrast with the Basque Country

Three days earlier (15 November), Palestine will play against the Basque National Team at San Mamés in Bilbao. In this case — as Catalan organisations underline — the institutions and the regional administration clearly supported the initiative. Within just one day, 35,000 tickets were sold.

In the Basque Country, they understood the sporting, political and symbolic dimension of this match. Here, however, Catalonia – Palestine has not received the care or attention it deserves, lament the organisations.

© Grzegorz Kaliciak

Appeal to Barcelona authorities

Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya has submitted an official request to the Barcelona City Council, demanding a clear guarantee that the match will take place at Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys as originally announced.

Politicians emphasise that the event carries strong symbolic, sporting and solidarity value. According to ERC representatives, failing to ensure that the match takes place at Montjuïc would be a lack of respect towards the work carried out by the organisations involved in the project.

Why is this match being held?

The Act x Palestine campaign stresses that this sporting event is part of a larger international mobilisation. Additional concerts will take place — on 23 December at Razzmatazz and on 29 January at Palau Sant Jordi. According to the organisers, sport can be a tool of collective consciousness and solidarity.

We have the teams, the supporters, the people, the history, and above all, we have the duty. We have fifteen days to make history. Let’s fill the stadium! – they underline in their statement.

The visit of the Palestinian national team to Europe forms part of a fundraising campaign for the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip, devastated by military operations over the past two years. The sports world has spoken out repeatedly on this issue in recent months. During this year’s Vuelta a España there were demonstrations by pro-Palestinian supporters and activists, and several clubs — including Club Esportiu Europa — publicly expressed support for Palestine despite regulatory restrictions imposed by the Royal Spanish Football Federation.