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JUMP TO:
- Who owns Barcelona?
- Who are the "socios" who make up the club's ownership?
- How do fans become "socios"?
- Who is the Barcelona president and what do they do?
- Are Barcelona still in debt?
Barcelona are amongst the world's most renowned football clubs.
The 2025 Forbes list of most valuable football clubs listed Barcelona at third-highest in the world, behind only Real Madrid and Manchester United.
Winners of five Champions League titles and a perennial contender for every trophy they are eligible to win, Barcelona would make a potential owner very, very rich. That is, if they had an owner — or, a traditional one, anyways.
The Sporting News details how Barcelona's ownership model is structured, who runs the day-to-day operations, and how fans are the ones truly at the helm of the world's most prominent Catalan side.
Who owns Barcelona?
Barcelona are one of the last major fan-owned clubs in world football.
The Catalan giants are not owned by any corporation, individual, or consortium. Instead, fans can purchase membership of the club. Members are known as "socios" and pay a small per-year fee of €225 ($265). Once an individual has been a member for 40 consecutive years, and pass the age of 65, the membership fee is waived.
As of 2025, the club had over 140,000 socios. The total dropped to 133,000 in 2023 during a census, with a number of members removed for inactivity, but Barcelona added 10,619 members in the 2024/25 season.
Other big clubs run by supporters include Real Madrid, Borussia Dortmund, Bayern Munich (mostly), Athletic Club, Panathinaikos, and most large South American clubs including Corinthians, Santos, Palmeiras, Gremio, Flamengo, Sao Paulo, Atletico Mineiro, Fluminese, River Plate, Atletico Penarol, and nearly all Argentine clubs.
What is a 'socio'?
Club owners, otherwise known as "socios" — which roughly translates to "partner" — make up the fan-led group of club owners at Barcelona, as well as at Real Madrid.
The socios elect the club president and the board of directors. Joan Laporta, the current president of Barcelona, is in his second stint in the role. He initially served as Barcelona president from 2003 to 2010, during which he hired Pep Guardiola as head coach. After a time in Catalan politics, Laporta returned to the post as president, elected again in 2021, and has served in the position since. Elections will take place this March.
Barcelona have been run by socios since the club's inception, even surviving the socio purge of 1992. Spanish law at that time forced all clubs to register as PLCs (public limited companies), which threatened the socio model, but certain clubs such as Real Madrid and Barcelona took advantage of a loophole by proving they were profitable for five years running.
Socios have voting powers in club elections and have first access to purchasing tickets. The voting process sees all members elect a 2,000-person Member Assembly, which has the power to approve the club's budget, discipline the president, and authorize loans, among other duties. The Member Assembly elects serve four-year terms.
How do fans become Barcelona 'socios'?
Unlike at rivals Real Madrid, becoming a Barcelona "socio" is quite simple.
All fans must do is fill out a form, either online or in person, and pay the membership fee, and voila, you are a "socio"! While there used to be a three-year waiting period, that was scrapped under president Laporta.
The club does not require a prospective member to be given approval from existing members, which is something insisted upon at Real Madrid. Additionally, unlike at Madrid, there is not a limited amount of spots among Barcelona socios. At Madrid, there is a waiting list many prospective members report to be quite long, since the only way to be given a spot is if someone gives it up or otherwise loses membership, or if more spots are added.
A member's number and membership status is non-transferrable, so the only way to renounce socio status is to step down or pass away. It is therefore not possible to sell or pass down your membership.
Who is Barcelona president?
As of February 2026, the sitting president of Barcelona is Joan Laporta. He has been in office since being elected in 2021, taking over for Josep Bartomeu, who had resigned in 2020 amid widespread anger at the club's management, specifically the dire financial situation and Bartomeu's public spat with Lionel Messi.
Laporta is currently in his second stint as president of the club. He was first elected in 2003 and spent seven years at the helm, during which he saw the rise of Messi and the hiring of Pep Guardiola.
After a decade spent in Catalan politics, Laporta returned to Barcelona with his election in 2021, where he has since been tasked with stabilising the club's finances after the emergency situation brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic and years of financial mismanagement under Bartomeu.
Presidential terms at Barcelona are five years in length — Laporta had them reduced from six — at which point elections must be held for president and all board members.
As a result, Laporta will need to face elections this year, and he has decided to call a midseason election, with the referendum to be held on March 15. As per Barca statutes, he and key board members will resign on February 9, at which point candidates can begin campaigning for election.
Are Barcelona still in debt?
Barcelona are through the most dire period of their financial struggles, but they are still significantly in debt.
The club is believed to owe around €1.5 billion ($1.8bn), thanks in part to the massive renovation project to update their stadium, Camp Nou. The club is banking on revenue from the improved venue to rectify the situation in the long term, but for now, they are still under considerable financial strain.
According to Barcelona's treasurer in January of 2026, the club still has liabilities of around €2.5bn ($3bn), with the New York Times describing Laporta's strategy as "spending its way out of crisis."
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