Barcelona Announces New Stadium for Girona Showdown as Camp Nou Renovation Drags On

Barcelona have announced they will host their upcoming La Liga fixture against Girona at the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys while continuing to wait for the partial reopening of Camp Nou.

Construction work commenced at Camp Nou in June 2023, forcing Barcelona to play away from their legendary home ground for the past two seasons. Initial plans suggested the stadium would reopen with limited capacity for the start of the 2025–26 season, but substantial delays have prevented the Catalan club from returning to their home venue.

The club was scheduled to return for the Joan Gamper Trophy friendly against Como in August, but was instead compelled to host the traditional fixture at the much smaller Estadi Johan Cruyff—the home ground for the women's and reserve teams.

While they have staged multiple fixtures at the 6,000-capacity venue this season, they have also utilized the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys for home games, a stadium that has served as their regular alternative while Camp Nou remains unavailable.

Barcelona have announced that their forthcoming clash with Girona on Oct. 18 will take place at the Montjuïc stadium, as the club continues waiting for authorization to reopen Camp Nou.

An official club statement declared: "FC Barcelona confirms that the LaLiga Matchday 9 encounter against Girona FC, scheduled for Saturday, October 18 at 4:15 p.m., will take place at the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys.

"The Club remains committed to securing the required administrative approvals for opening Spotify Camp Nou and maintains ongoing dialogue with Barcelona City Council to facilitate the necessary inspections in the upcoming days.

"While the initial occupancy permit for Phase 1A (Stands and Goal) is anticipated shortly—allowing capacity for up to 27,000 fans—FC Barcelona aims to return to Spotify Camp Nou upon receiving the Phase 1B license (Stands, Goal and Side), which will expand capacity to 45,000 spectators."

The Blaugrana had intended to stage their opening home league fixture of the campaign—a commanding 6–0 victory over Valencia on Sept. 14—at Camp Nou, but ongoing complications mean their official homecoming date remains undetermined. Reports indicate they may postpone their return until November to welcome fans back.