Barça place first brick in new Barça Academy in Bishkek

The blaugrana delegation in Central Asia on Wednesday moved from the city of Jalal-Abad to Bishkek, the Kyrgyzstan capital, where the Barça Legends will face a Legends of Asia XI later today at 8pm local time (4pm CEST). The Barça party was met at the airport by the mayor of the city, Emilbek Abdykadyrov, symbolising the warm reception to the visit in the capital. 

After the institutional welcome, president Joan Laporta and the sporting director of Barça Academy, Sergi Barjuan, made their way to the ground where the second academy will be built in Kyrgyzstan. There, a time capsule was placed in a symbolic event to mark the new training centre for the Club. 

The event was attended by important figures such as the president of Kyrgyzstan, Sadyr Zhaparov, and Aibek Alybaev, president of Jalgroup Asia, the company developing the Barça Experience project with the Club in the country. 

During his speech, president Laporta praised the Kyrgyzstan president for promoting sport and football in his country and for doing so with FC Barcelona. For his part, president Zhaparov showed himself to be very happy that Barça were supporting the project and that it was first Barça Experience project in the region of Central Asia. 

First brick in the Kyrgyzstan National Stadium

After the event in the capital the blaugrana party attended the placing of the first brick by the country's president in the town of Orok, nine kilometres from the capital, to mark the start of the construction of a new Kyrgyzstan National Stadium, an ambitious new project that will serve as the home of the nation's football team. 

Barça Legends in Bishkek

For their part, the Barça Legends with Puyol, Rivaldo, Belleti, Giuly amongst many other well known names, prepared at the hotel Hyatt Regency in Bishkek for their game later on. 

Jalgroup Asia announced that unfortunately Ronaldinho will not be able to take part in the game due to personal circumstances which have prevented the Brazilian making the trip to Kyrgyzstan. 

‘Barça Experience’, a strategic project

With the building of the second Academy in Kyrgyzstan under way and the opening of the first in Jalal-Abad on Tuesday,  the expansion of the Barça brand in the country is up and running with a Barça Store and Barça Café also planned. 

Barça Experience has started its move into Central Asia and as president Laporta said on his arrival in Kyrgyzstan, the project is a strategic one which has as its mission expansion into countries around the world bring the Barça brand closer to the fans.