La Liga turn down Barcelona’s request to face Valencia away at Mestalla amid Camp Nou concerns

Barcelona are dealing with yet another headache off the pitch as their stadium situation remains unresolved.

La Liga has rejected the club’s request to swap fixtures so that their Matchday 4 clash against Valencia could be played at Mestalla instead of in Catalonia.

This decision leaves the Blaugrana scrambling for a backup venue, as the Spotify Camp Nou remains unavailable due to ongoing renovation works.

The match is scheduled for the weekend of September 13–14, but as of now, Barcelona have no confirmed home ground for the game.

The club had initially pinned hopes on two solutions – either to move the fixture to Girona’s Montilivi stadium or to push La Liga to allow the swap with Valencia.

With the latter officially ruled out, the pressure is on the Catalans to find an alternative in time.

Options narrow as time runs out
Barcelona technically have an agreement to use the Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys at Montjuic until February 2025.

However, the venue cannot host the game against Valencia because a Post Malone concert is set to take place there that same weekend.

This unexpected clash of schedules leaves Montjuic off the table for one of the most important fixtures in the opening stages of the season.

As it stands, the Johan Cruyff Stadium and Girona’s Montilivi remain the only realistic options. But neither is an ideal choice for a high-profile clash, especially one against a side like Valencia.

Playing at Johan Cruyff would severely limit capacity, while Montilivi would involve shifting the game outside Barcelona, which may not sit well with supporters.

Fortunately, the scheduling issue seems to affect only the Valencia match.

By the time Barcelona face Getafe on September 20–21, the turf at Montjuic will be ready again following the concert.

Even so, the uncertainty surrounding the Valencia game underlines just how challenging the Camp Nou renovation timeline has been for the club.