58-year-old lawyer Joan Laporta, poised favorite to replace Josep
Maria Bartomeu, has been confirmed as Barcelona's new president, beating
Victor Font and Toni Freixa in Sunday's election. He amassed 54.28* of the
vote, Font - 29.99% and Freixa - 8.58%. This will be Laporta's second term as
Barcelona's president. He took charge of the club from 2003 to 2010. During his
reign, Barcelona won two Champions League titles and four league titles.
For the first time, Lionel Messi - accompanied by his son
Thiago - voted in club elections. Laporta has reportedly been Messi's choice
all along. The night before election day, Laporta was asked if he would be in
touch with Messi's entourage on voting day, and he said: “Why tomorrow? I
can speak tonight, the night is long.”
“These are the most important elections in the history of FC
Barcelona,” Laporta declared. “They have been organized in a model fashion.”
Font who lost the elections TV3: “I think it has been a
constructive campaign. It is good for the institution that we celebrate a
democratic day like today and that we congratulate the winner.
“Obviously, the results are not we wanted, but I want to
thank thousands of Catalans who have supported us and given us their trust.
“I believe that the context in which the club finds itself
has led to a rebound effect. We were fighting against a well-known former
president. Against that it has been very complicated.
“I will continue working to ensure that the Barca of the
future is as we believe it should be. We have to reflect and digest the result,
but the aims of helping to transform the club continues.”
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