“Nobody has benefited Barça more economically than me”

The new LaLiga course begins on Saturday and few people are more informed about the news that will be available than Jaume Roures (Barcelona, ​​1950), the CEO of Mediapro, the production company that has the television rights to the competition.

In this interview with EFE Roures he also refers to the Messi Case and the crisis that the institution of which he is a fan and partner is experiencing: FC Barcelona. In it he makes it clear that he is not behind any pre-candidacy for the next presidential election and vindicates what he has contributed to the club.

Question: Will there be any news on television broadcasts this season?

Reply: We will improve some aspects of augmented reality, but we are working on an interim basis. The positions of the cameras, closer to the pitch than before, and other certain actions that we now carry out are the product of the coronavirus and when the situation improves in this regard there will be new changes.

Q: Will this course continue to have a virtual audience?

A: Yes, there will be a virtual audience and the recorded sound of each team's audience when they play at home.

Q: What are the forecasts that you have at the level of television audiences? In some sports competitions they have decreased during the coronavirus.

A: We started the games after the break with more audience than before and later this was decreasing. Although internationally we had a much larger audience, especially since there were no local football competitions in Asia and America at the time. It is difficult to make predictions because we are facing an economic and health crisis and the good football fan has other problems on top. But the Champions League went very well at the audience level.

Q: In recent days, given the possible departure of Messi, the blow that would mean for LaLiga losing its flagship was analyzed. In the economic field, is the continuity of the Argentine at Barcelona great news?

A: First of all, sportingly is great news for all football fans. But LaLiga right now has practically all the international television rights sold for the next three or four years and, despite the fact that a loss of these characteristics would have an effect, it has a very consolidated product. In the Premier League, for example, you will not see them put their hands on their heads for losing a star because they have a very established brand for a long time. Neither Serie A has increased its international value due to the presence of Cristiano Ronaldo nor Ligue 1 has ceased to be the last of the top five due to the presence of Neymar. In any case, Messi's departure would have been bad news. Much better than staying here.

Q: Does Mediapro work with the idea that there may be an audience in the stadiums during this season?

A: I personally am one of those who believe that you shouldn't take risks because you can't play with people's health. Until there are total guarantees, I am not in favor of people going to stadiums. The pressure to return as soon as possible is not a good advisor. I find it very difficult to keep the distance in a stadium and doing PCR tests has a cost and is not available to everyone.

Q: As a Barça fan and partner, how are you experiencing Barcelona's crisis?

A: The fundamental thing about the crisis is this directive that Messi defined very well when he said that he has no project and that he only juggles. What happens is that these juggling led to 1,000 million euros in failed signings. It makes me laugh because Bartomeu's board talks as if the problems had nothing to do with them. For example, the salaries are very high because they signed them one day. Now I see that people are realizing the financial irresponsibility in which the club has been involved for a long time.

And it still seems that they want to push Espai Barça forward. It seems irresponsible to me because, beyond the club's economy being in a terrible situation, we are in a coronavirus crisis in which nobody knows what will happen. Now is the time to decide if we make a stadium with 110,000 or 120,000 spectators? If perhaps for years they cannot go more than 5,000, who knows. All this can make me think that behind Espai Barça there must be some particular interest. The artificial interest in this operation seems suspicious to me.

Q: A motion of censure is now under way against the president, Josep Maria Bartomeu, and his board of directors. Do you see options for success?

A: I don't know, I see it as very difficult because in the current situation it is very difficult to reach people. The 7,500 signatures that they announced that they had on Tuesday of the 16,500 they must get to take the motion to a referendum seem few to me to achieve the objective. But they seem like a lot to me in terms of how many people are against the management of this board of directors. In any case, I totally agree with the people who want the elections to be brought forward and if this is a mechanism that can help to achieve it, go ahead. Otherwise we will have to apply pressure in some other way.

Q: In recent days, some voices have linked you back to Víctor Font's pre-candidacy for the presidency of Barça. They are right?

A: Leaving aside the fact that I have always denied that it is part of Font's candidacy, these things are promoted by the current directive to discredit the candidacies. Although, in the event that I wanted to be part of any candidacy, what would be the problem? I have been a member of Barça for 30 years and nobody has contributed as much money to the club through television and other aspects as a server. The money for television rights that Barça got was thanks to the fact that a server one day showed up there and said that instead of 56 million they could charge 120. Nobody has benefited the club more than a server from an economic point of view. So I would be able to do what I consider, but it does not matter because this world of mediocre directives does not interest me at all.