Barcelona set for €10m financial boost as Asia friendlies confirmed | OneFootball

In December, it was reported that Barcelona would not be returning to the United States in 2025 for their pre-season tour, with Asia being the destination instead. Now, confirmation of locations are starting to come in.

Upon that news being announced that the US would not be their choice of venue for next summer, speculation has persisted about where Barcelona could be playing pre-season matches. China, Japan and South Korea were floated as possibilities, and now there has been some clarity.

As per MD, Barcelona have signed an agreement with Korean promotion company D-drive Corporation to host four matches in Asia, with the idea being for two to be played in South Korea, and two in Japan.

Hansi Flick’s squad will be in Asia this summer (Photo by GORKA LEIZA / Diario AS)

According to the report, the two pre-season friendlies in South Korea will see Barcelona bring in an approximate fee of €10m. One of the matches is expected to be against the K-League all-stars, who Atletico Madrid faced during their last tour of the East Asian country. Meanwhile, the other fixture is likely to be against a European giant, although there are limited options due to the Club World Cup being played in the United States across June and July.

Barcelona failed to qualify for the new 32-team format after a disappointing quarter-final exit in last season’s Champions League. They have lost out on a very good sum of money, and they are trying to make that deficit up with these friendlies in Asia.

In recent years, there has been a pre-season Clasico between Barcelona and Real Madrid in the United States, but this is a match that will not happen in 2025 because of Los Blancos’ involvement in the Club World Cup. That would have been a profitable fixture for the Catalans, but it is not to be.