Spanish Football League: Olmo can play again at Barça in the Supercup from Sunday

Hansi Flick can breathe a sigh of relief after days of fighting for the right to play for European champion Dani Olmo. The Supreme Sports Council of Spain, Consejo Superior de Deportes (CSD), initially approved registration for Olmo and his Spanish compatriot Pau Víctor. Both are therefore allowed to play for FC Barcelona until a final decision is made, which could take months.

The CSD will now hear the arguments of LaLiga and the association regarding the refusal of a new license for both players in order to make a final decision. In the meantime, Olmo and Víctor can play again. This was also the case in the final of the Spanish Supercopa – comparable to the German Supercup – this Sunday. For the semi-final on Wednesday evening against Athletic Bilbao, which the Catalans won 2-0 with goals from Gavi (17th minute) and Lamine Yamal (52nd), both were still without permission to play.

Barcelona superior to Bilbao

The Supercopa final will either face Real Madrid or RCD Mallorca. Both teams meet on Thursday (8 p.m./DAZN) in Jeddah (Saudi Arabia). Barcelona coach Hansi Flick could then win his first title in Spain. Against Bilbao, his team missed many good chances to achieve greater success, but they were also lucky that Athletic didn’t take advantage of their opportunities. The Basques had previously not lost 15 games in all competitions.

The reason for the constant headlines surrounding Olmo over the last two weeks is the Catalans’ financial problems. FC Barcelona is heavily in debt and was initially unable to present the league with an alternative to meet the conditions for Olmo’s registration. The Catalans also failed in their attempt to force registration in court.

The sale of VIP boxes in the modernized Camp Nou stadium, where the team has not yet played again, ultimately brought about the breakthrough. An investment fund from the Arab region is said to have paid 100 million euros for it, but Barcelona was initially unable to show the full amount.

Olmo’s departure would have been expensive

Even before the decision, Flick had emphasized that he had “confidence in the club and everyone involved.” To be honest, he and the team are not happy with the situation either. At least the club bosses are spared from having to dig deep into their pockets for practically nothing.

According to Spanish reports, a free transfer for Olmo if he failed to register could have cost the club over 260 million euros. When he moved from RB Leipzig to FC Barcelona for 55 million, Olmo signed a contract until the end of June 2030 and was entitled to his salary until then.