Learning about the Association’s mission from the other side of the Atlantic

On Friday the 3rd of February, the Barça Players Association (BPA) welcomed a group of coaches from the USA who are visiting Barcelona to learn about different management models for sport and football.

After a visit to the FC Barcelona Museum, the Association President, Ramon Alfonseda, welcomed them to the BPA Headquarters, where the ex-player and Director, Eduardo Juan, gave a talk on the organisation, its work, and the motivations that drive it. Juan made the point that the figure of the “ex-player” is in reality “a player” because “we are always players”. The veteran, who as well as being a member is also on the BPA Board of Directors, described the Association as the “meeting point” for Barça players and ex-players.

The spokesman went through the different Association departments (Job Centre, Education, and Social and Sports Projects) and the tasks which each department carries out. He also explained the latest international matches played, such as the game played in Greece in collaboration with the UNHCR, and announced the new membership of 52 female players and ex-players who will make up the new women’s section of the Association. In this way, Juan made reference to women’s football in the USA, which is much more recognised than it is in Europe. 

Above all, the ex-player emphasised the values which are the mark of the BPA: “Respect, solidarity, and fair play” and “that which makes Barça more than a club”. He highlighted the fact that the primary aim of the Association is to “improve the quality of life of Barça ex-players” and that this responsibility runs through the organisation as a “moral obligation”.

With a global vision of the Association’s mission, Juan transmitted the wish to forge alliances around the world, and after explaining that both Alfonseda and Luis Ortiz de Zevallos, Association Director, will soon embark on a visit to Shanghai, Juan concluded his talk by saying that “we still have a lot of projects in mind here, and we never stop”.