Spanish Super Cup: Barcelona In Saudi Arabia For Money Gains – Valverde

Barcelona Head coach Ernesto Valverde has said the Spanish Super Cup is only being held in Saudi Arabia because of the money on offer.

Valvarde made this known in a pre-match press conference in Saudi Arabia.

The competition was in 2019 reorganised to include the two tops in La Liga and the finalists in the Copa del Rey.

The old format was a home and away match between the La Liga Winner and the Copa del Rey winner and usually played in August.

According to Valvarde: “The bottom line is football has become a business and as a business it looks for income.

“That’s the reason we are all here.

“It’s a completely different format to what we’re used to. It was always the first title and the opener of the season and to me that seemed fine.

“It’s been changed and let’s see; it will be judged once it has happened. It’s interesting, with four good teams, but from a sporting point of view, I’m not sure.”

Barcelona and Real Madrid will earn €6 million each, €3 million for Atletico Madrid, while aggrieved Valencia will earn €2 million from the competition.

Meanwhile, there has been criticism over decision to stage the event in Saudi Arabia following its human rights issues.

However, the deal was secured after Saudi Arabia agreed women would be able to watch the event live.