Barcelona take out 155-million-euro loan

Spanish champions Barcelona have taken out a loan of 155 million euros (196 million dollars), the club said Wednesday.

The club announced on July 6 that it would take out the loan but the agreement between it and a host of banks led by La Caixa and Banco Santander, Spain’s largest bank, was only signed on Wednesday.

Last week Barcelona’s new president Sandro Rosell, who was elected on June 13, told radio RAC1 that he “had found the club to be endebted and with treasury problems but we are in the process of solving them”.

“Our top priority is to find the resources and the liquidity to be able to meet the club’s short-term commitments.

“Club members can relax. The club is not facing bankruptcy and this week we will have the tools… to pay the salaries of our players, technicians and employees,” he added.

Caixa Catalunya, Cajamar, Caja Madrid, CAM, Banco Popular, Banco Sabadell, Banesto and BBVA are the other Spanish banks involved in the loan.

Barcelona signed striker David Villa for 40 million euros in May but have parted ways since the end of the season with Ivory Coast defender Yaya Toure, French striker Thierry Henry and Ukrainian defender Dmitryo Chygrynskiy.

Toure joined Manchester City in a deal worth 30 million euros, Chygrynskiy returned to Ukrainian powerhouse Shakhtar Donetsk in a deal worth 15 million euros while Henry joined the New York Red Bulls for a yet to be disclosed amount.