David Carabén appointed commissioner of 125th anniversary and creation of Historic Commission for FC Barcelona's Historic Memory

In an ordinary session at Montserrat Abbey this Tuesday, the FC Barcelona Board of Directors discussed the following matters:

David Carabén appointed commissioner of 125th anniversary 

David Carabén will be the Commissioner for the club’s 125^th anniversary and will thus be in charge of the events to be held in 2024.

Born in 1971 in Barcelona, and a graduate in political sciences, Carabén is also the singer, guitarist and songwriter for the band Mishima and has a weekly sports column in La Vanguardia.

He directed and presented the show Recorda Míster on Barça TV as well as the show titled L’habitació dels miralls while also having served as director of Nit a la terra on BTV. In 2005, he published his book La forma d'un sentit (Editorial Empúries).

His father Armand Carabén, lawyer and economist, was CEO of FC Barcelona from 1970 to 1975 under Agustí Montal i Costa, a key period for the democratisation and Catalanisation of the club, and is best known for his part in signing Johan Cruyff and organising the 75^th anniversary celebrations.

David Carabén: “I am very proud of the responsibility involved in accepting this position at a club that I hold in my heart, and it is another chance to show what being ‘més que un club’ is all about, showcasing its sporting, institutional, social and symbolic identity. I am so proud to do the same job that my father did for the 75^th anniversary, when the club changed direction in times of change. I thank President Laporta and his board for putting their confidence in me. I shall put the best years of my life into it!”

Approval of Commission for Historic Memory of FC Barcelona

The board also agreed to found a Commission for the Historic Memory of FC Barcelona, which shall recover, study and promote the club’s sporting, social and democratic legacy, one of the drivers of the notion of més que un club, and using all of the channels offered by modern day technology.

The Commission will be presided by institutional vice-president Elena Fort, assisted by representatives of the Museum and the FC Barcelona Documentary and Study Centre. The initial membership, to possibly be expanded in future weeks, will be the following:

• Josep Maria Solé i Sabaté. Professor of Contemporary History at the University of Barcelona. He was the first director of the History Museum of Catalonia. He has authored several books on the Civil War and post-war period. He has also directed and presented radio and television shows on current affairs and recent Catalan history. His books of Barça include Historia del FC Barcelona. De 12 a 120.000 socios; Sunyol, l’altre president afusellat and El Barça en guerra (1936-1939).
• Xavier Garcia Luque. Journalist. Sports editor at La Vanguardia for four decades. Specialist in historic research of Catalan sport. His books on Barça history include el Gran Àlbum del Barça; El cas Di Stéfano; El Barça segrestat i La leyenda del Barça.
• Carles Viñas. Doctor of contemporary history at the University of Barcelona and member of the research group on States, Nations and Sovereignties at the Universitat Pompeu Fabra de Barcelona. Combiones research work with teaching and popularisation. Has published several essays on football and society including Tolerància zero. La violència en el futbol; Barcelona blaugrana; Futbol al país dels soviets and Sankt Pauli, un altre futbol és possible.
• Josep Bobé. Fervent Barça historian who wrote Quan no érem ni onze, a novelised chronicle of the early years of FC Barcelona history. Also worked on the book El Barça, rey de Europa. Has written articles and reports making major contributions to club history in various media.

Partnership agreement with Montserrat Abbey as part of the Montserrat Millennium of 2025

FC Barcelona and Montserrat Abbey have signed an agreement to bring the two parties together in preparation for 2025, when the Monastery and Abbey of Montserrat will be celebrating its one thousandth anniversary (1025 – 2025), and its emblematic foundation by the Abbot Oliba, Abbot of Ripoll and Bishop of Vic.

The parties shall also be continuing the work being done together by La Masia and the Escolania de Montserrat, with student and staff exchanges between the Ciutat Esportiva Joan Gamper and Montserrat, thus fostering joint projects between youngsters studying in such different fields.

Two legal cases against the club by the World Confederation of Penyes

The board has recently been informed that the World Confederation of Penyes has filed two legal claims against the club.

These two cases have been taken to the Barcelona Courts and are unprecedented in that members of the supporters movement are making a claim against the club itself. The Legal Area is preparing its response to the Confederations pretensions on the understanding that it is acting in its own name and merely wishes to safeguard its power and control over its members clubs.

The Confederation’s claims thus go against the interests of the supporters movement as a whole by standing between a direct relationship between the club and its penyes, and impede the provision of a better service to all concerned via the FC Barcelona Penyes Department.