Barça face the always tough trip to Atlético de Madrid’s Vicente Calderón stadium, determined to maintain their challenge to retain their Spanish League title. Real Madrid is 10 points ahead, but FC Barcelona is far from giving up the championship.
No workers will be laid off and no strikes will be organised. The management and workers of Barcelona Opera House have reached an agreement on the theatre’s deficit reduction measures. The management has decided not to proceed with the temporary mass layoff of 90% of the staff for 2 months after accepting the workers proposal to give up their extra payment in the summer. The agreement guarantees the regular schedule of the opera season, with the exception of ‘A Florentine Tragedy’, due out in April, which might be cancelled.
FC Barcelona experienced an increase of 24% in the number of visitors to its museum, and of 59% increase in turnover with respect to 2010. Las year a total of 1,626,990 people visited the Camp Nou Experience, the combined name for the Stadium Tour, the Museum and the multimedia space. The Barça Museum is the third most visited museum in all of Spain.
Barcelona’s Opera House faces a deficit of 3.7 million euros, after a reduction of public funds and other revenues. In the last weeks tense negotiations between the theatre’s management and employees are taking place. Workers are facing the temporary suspension of their contracts from March 20th to April 19th. Workers will also be affected from June 5th to the July 8th.
Leo Messi’s four goals on Sunday night against Valencia have taken his overall tally in the Spanish League to 146. The 146 goals he has scored even place him above the legendary FC Barcelona player César Rodríguez as Messi looks set to smash records galore.
Barça came back from an early goal by Piatti for the visitors to bury Valencia with four goals from Messi and a fifth from Xavi to round off a fantastic performance that showed FC Barcelona are still up for the fight for the Spanish League title.
FC Barcelona have given their fans the perfect Valentine’s Day gift – a convincing win away to Bayer Leverkusen at the Champions League that puts them well on course for a place in the quarter finals. Alexis (2) and Messi scored the goals for Barça.
Fathallah Sijilmassi is the substitute of Youssef Amrani, who quit after less than one year in office to become Morocco’s Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister. Sijilmassi was Director General of the Moroccan Agency for Investments, and previously served as the Moroccan Ambassador to Paris and earlier to the European Communities. The Union for the Mediterranean has its permanent Secretariat based in Barcelona. The UfM brings together the 27 European Union Member States and 16 countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea.
The Champions League returns at a good time for Barça following the weekend’s slip up in Pamplona, which left them 10 points adrift of the Spanish League leaders, Real Madrid, leaving no time for regrets, as they pick up the title they won at Wembley last season. Barça take up the defence of their Champions League title in Germany on Tuesday evening (20.45 CET), taking on Bayer Leverkusen in the last 16.
Barça have suffered their second defeat of the season away to an Osasuna side that made the most of their chances and adapted better to the freezing conditions. FC Barcelona were two goals down at half time but in the second half looked to have equalised when Alexis’s goal was ruled offside.
Alimentaria 2012 is one of the most important trade fairs in the world focusing on food and drinks. It is organised in the Catalan capital every two years. The next edition will be held between March 26th and March 29th, reducing its length from 5 to 4 days. However, the trade fair maintains the exhibition space and the number of exhibitors and participants.
After having qualified for the Spanish Cup final and just before the Champions League gets back under way, Barça’s attention turns back to the Spanish League campaign. The Catalan side hopes to over take Real Madrid, who are seven points ahead.
Legendary British band to play alongside Wilco, Franz Ferdinand, Death Cab for Cutie, XX, Beirut, Yo La Tengo, The Drums, and Mudhoney, among others in a strong 2012 lineup. The festival will be held from May 30th to June 3rd in Barcelona.
Barcelona City Council will apply a tax in order to exercise the profession, aiming for more professionalism. The reform also wants to regulate an activity that on some occasions blocks the circulation of pedestrians in the middle parts of Les Rambles.
FC Barcelona, the Kings of the competition, qualified for another Spanish Cup Final after beating Valencia at the Camp Nou, thanks to goals from Cesc and Xavi, one in each half. Guardiola’s team will play the Cup Final against Athletic Bilbao for the second time in 3 years.