Barcelona to ask La Liga to start next season with three straight away games as Hansi Flick's men decide date of long-awaited Camp Nou return

According to Cadena Ser,after a prolonged stay at the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys on Montjuic, the Catalan giants are keen to return to their spiritual home by mid-September. Hence, they are going to formally request La Liga to schedule their first three matches of the upcoming season away from home, so that they can ramp up their efforts for a partial return to the iconic Camp Nou stadium.

Although the club are targeting the fourth round of fixtures for their return, the stadium will not be fully completed at that point. Instead, Barcelona will resume playing at Camp Nou in a transitional phase, welcoming around 60,000 spectators - a little over half the venue’s future full capacity of 105,000.

The structure will still be missing critical components, such as the third tier, and only minimal essential services will be available during this period. Fans will have to prepare for potential inconveniences: if it rains, everyone - including those in the presidential suite - will be exposed, as the full roofing will not be in place. Furthermore, many of the food and hospitality services will not be operational, and attendees will use temporary access routes.

Barcelona will maintain the digital ticketing model currently used at Montjuic for the transitional period at Camp Nou. The club will offer a digital season pass, valid only for the 2025–26 campaign, which will not be linked to a fixed seat but instead to a designated seating zone. In a shift from traditional season ticket systems, fans will be required to confirm their attendance ahead of each match. This approach, designed for flexibility amid the ongoing renovations, allows the club to manage attendance and stadium logistics more effectively during the partial reopening.

In recent weeks, the club has laid down a temporary turf at Camp Nou - not intended for long-term use, but to support the ground's substructure and improve drainage. The permanent pitch is expected to be installed at the end of June, with an estimated rooting period of six weeks. If all goes as planned, this will allow the playing surface to be ready by mid-August.

Barcelona could use the annual Joan Gamper Trophy fixture as a test event to welcome fans back to the stadium. However, the decision is still pending. Should the pitch be deemed unfit for competitive action in August, the event might be postponed until after the league season starts - or, alternatively, it could be hosted abroad. Switzerland, the birthplace of the club’s founder Hans Gamper, has been mentioned as a potential venue.