Més que un club no més? [More than a club no more?]

by Elizabeth Hanchett, writing from New York

In a completely unprecedented and unexpected move, the board at FC Barcelona announced this afternoon that its policy for accepting members (“socios” in Spanish, “socis” in Catalan) to the club was going to change. The original policy, which has been going on for years now, especially since the propagation of “El Gran Repte”, begun in 2004 in an attempt to bring more revenue into the club, was that anyone, around the world, could become a member of FC Barcelona and have a voice in the club, as FC Barcelona is an organization run completely by its members. The new policy, effective November 1, 2010, with restrictions beginning tomorrow, is that only existing members, relatives of members, and children under the age of 14 will be allowed to become card-carrying members of FC Barcelona.

(Source: philosofooty)