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Carles Puyol endorses Barcelona presidential candidate Victor Font

By Chiranjib Ghosh

Barcelona's midfielder Carles Puyol speaks during an announcement at the Sports Center FC Barcelona Joan Gamper in Sant Joan Despi, near Barcelona on March 4, 2014. Barcelona captain Carles Puyol will leave the Catalans at the end of the season, the 35-year-old announced today. AFP PHOTO/ LLUIS GENE (Photo credit should read LLUIS GENE/AFP/Getty Images)
Barcelona's midfielder Carles Puyol speaks during an announcement at the Sports Center FC Barcelona Joan Gamper in Sant Joan Despi, near Barcelona on March 4, 2014. Barcelona captain Carles Puyol will leave the Catalans at the end of the season, the 35-year-old announced today. AFP PHOTO/ LLUIS GENE (Photo credit should read LLUIS GENE/AFP/Getty Images) /
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Barcelona presidential candidate Victor Font is stepping up his campaign

Since taking over from the tainted Sandro Rosell as Barcelona president, Josep Maria Bartomeu has overseen some tumultuous changes at the club. He did not enjoy much support early on, but consolidated his power after calling early elections in 2015.

Bartomeu faced a motion of no confidence from ex-presidential candidate Agusti Benedito, but it failed. Since then, he was been pressured to make changes in the structure of the club. The appointment of Éric Abidal as replacement for Robert Fernández was well-received.

But Bartomeu has already announced that he will not be standing for re-election when his term expires in 2021. One of the early contenders to throw their hat in the ring is Victor Font, who is slowly gaining popularity among ex-Culés unhappy with the Bartomeu presidency.

Of course, Gerard Piqué could also contest the 2021 presidential elections. The 32-year old Spanish centre-back has the backing of Josep Maria Bartomeu. But due to his inexperience in administrative affairs, Font could have the upper hand.

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Recently, Font stepped up his campaign in an event which attracted former club captain Carles Puyol, ex-Barça B manager Gerard López, former president Joan Gaspart and even current club spokesperson Josep Vives. The García brothers, Óscar and Roger, also showed up.

"Font said, “I’m in tune with Xavi, in relation to the project, and personally I love talking to him about football and I hope he can lead our footballing project.We have a lot of challenges for the next five or 10 years. A key one, and one of the first, is the management of the end of Messi [as he gets towards retiring].Football is very short-term and that way we would go nowhere, the future of Barcelona is in changing the management model. The economic model is obsolete; if we don’t sell players, we can’t make the numbers work.”"

The support of ex-captains like Xavi and Carles Puyol is going to be key in 2021. If Font secures the victory, it is highly likely that he will bring in club icons like Andrés Iniesta, Xavi, Carles Puyol and Víctor Valdés back into the fold in the footballing structure at the Camp Nou.

The biggest challenge that Victor Font will face in the upcoming presidential elections will be from veteran officials Joan Laporta and Agusti Benedito. Both of them are opposed to Josep Maria Bartomeu and hold significant sway at the club.

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But Font could have the advantage of being the newcomer into club politics, and his model could even include popular vice-captain Piqué.

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