Telefónica joins Espai Barça as five-year technology partner
Telefónica has signed a five-year partnership with Barcelona around Espai Barça, securing technology rights and premium hospitality inventory as the club builds the commercial ecosystem around the redeveloped Spotify Camp Nou.
Barcelona have signed Telefónica as an Official Partner of Espai Barça in a five-year agreement that combines connectivity services, technology rights and premium hospitality assets around the redeveloped Spotify Camp Nou.The partnership gives Telefónica priority status for future technology projects across Espai Barça, which includes the stadium, the future Palau Blaugrana and Campus Barça.Barcelona president Joan Laporta said: “This agreement with Telefónica brings to Espai Barça a leading company in technology and telecommunications that understands the scale and ambition of the project.“This partnership will allow us to continue working towards an increasingly connected and innovative Spotify Camp Nou and will help us offer the best possible experiences to our members and fans in general.”Telefónica will provide a range of connectivity services at Spotify Camp Nou as Barcelona look to build a more digitally advanced stadium capable of supporting higher levels of fan engagement and commercial activity.The company will also receive a private box and naming rights to one of the lounge spaces being constructed within the stadium’s double ring.The Telefónica Lounge will be accessible from the private boxes and used as a meeting area for sponsor guests during matches, giving the company a physical presence within Barcelona’s expanded premium hospitality operation.Telefónica España chairman Borja Ochoa said: “Telefónica is reaffirming its institutional role as a driving force in the Spanish economy, its support for culture and sport, and its commitment to Catalonia and the city of Barcelona.”The deal is strategically important for Barcelona because sponsorship is one of the revenue pillars underpinning the economics of Espai Barça.The club’s financing model is built around additional income generated by the redevelopment, including sponsorship and naming rights, hospitality, ticketing, catering, museum activity and events.Barcelona have previously projected that sponsorship and naming rights will contribute around 24% of the €247m in annual incremental revenue expected from the project once fully operational.Telefónica’s arrival also adds another large Spanish corporate brand to that commercial platform as construction of Spotify Camp Nou approaches its next phase.The stadium is expected to reach close to 105,000 capacity once the redevelopment is completed, with new hospitality areas and premium inventory forming an important part of Barcelona’s long-term revenue growth plans.The agreement therefore gives Telefónica both a technology role inside the stadium and a commercial position within one of the largest venue redevelopment projects in European football.