Barcelona Will Not Travel to Morocco
The Catalan club has called off a friendly match against Ittihad Riadhi due to the tense situation in the Spanish enclave of Ceuta.
The Catalan club has called off a friendly match against Ittihad Riadhi due to the tense situation in the Spanish enclave of Ceuta.
FC Barcelona announced on Friday, August 7, 2026, the cancellation of a friendly match against Moroccan club Ittihad Riadhi. The reason cited is the ongoing migrant crisis in the Spanish enclave of Ceuta in North Africa, which borders Morocco.
The match was scheduled for August 15, 2026, in the city of Tangier, in northwest Morocco, as part of the Spanish champions' preparations for the new season. However, the club's management, led by coach Hansi Flick, deemed that traveling at this time would be inappropriate.
"In light of the current uncertainty and circumstances, FC Barcelona considers that playing this match would be inappropriate," reads the official statement from the Catalan club, as reported by N1 BiH. A similar formulation was published by Kurir.rs, stating that the club believes it is not appropriate to play the match.
The decision is directly linked to the dramatic events of the past weeks. According to Kurir's report, last week around 78,000 migrants entered Ceuta's territory by sea from Morocco. N1 BiH, on the other hand, reports that Spanish authorities have stated that 70,000 people have been returned to Morocco. The death toll also varies across sources: Kurir.rs mentions around 100 casualties, while N1 BiH writes of nearly 80 drowned people who were attempting to reach Spanish territory.
Among the victims is a young Moroccan footballer, Faten Ben Amar El Azizi. Although most migrants have since returned to Morocco, between 3,000 and 5,000 remain in Ceuta, which has sparked new political tensions among European Union member states.
This is already the second friendly match canceled for Barcelona during this year's preseason. Previously, a match against Preston North End was also not played after a training camp in the UK, where Barcelona did face Birmingham City, drawing 2-2 and then winning on penalties.
Preparations continue in Italy, where matches against Nottingham Forest and Udinese are scheduled for this weekend. After that, Barcelona will host Egyptian club Al Ahly on August 19, 2026. Hansi Flick's team will begin their La Liga title defense on August 23, 2026, at 9:30 PM, with an away match against Elche.
