In what might be considered to be a move in incredibly bad taste, FC Barcelona are incorporating a columbarium into the Spotify Camp Nou as part of the remodelling of the famous old ground.
As the club’s official website states, the area will hold the ashes of 26,600 supporters who wish to have the cathedral of football as their final resting place.
Of course, they will need to pay for the privilege, and the website states that the cost will depend on the duration of the allocation.
It can therefore be inferred that the longer an urn is to be kept at the site, the more money it will cost. Prices start at €250 and go up to €6,000 meaning a significant financial injection into the club just when they need it – given that reservations on a space can be made now.
One has to assume that this is more than an ill-advised PR exercise too, and the club surely wouldn’t countenance the same if they didn’t believe that there was a demand for it.
Football fans can be fanatical at the best of times, but this would be taking their ‘support’ to a whole new level.
The new ground isn’t expected to be fully completed until 2025 and it isn’t clear what will happen to any ashes of the deceased in the meantime.
It’s also unclear as to whether this is something that other clubs may decide to follow suit on.