The day Marc Ciria presented himself as a pre-candidate for the Barcelona presidential elections, scheduled to take place in 2026, he said he would do everything possible to bring Lionel Messi back to the club.
The financier insisted that having Messi join forces with the club, in any capacity, would not only be the right move, but would also bring in a major revenue boost.
As such, he is convinced that this remains the path to follow in order to deal with the club’s enormous debt.
And, during an interview with SPORT, Ciria said he was working on this, without divulging specific details.
On being asked if he had spoken to or approached Messi with his plans, Ciria replied: “Leo Messi is a multinational company, and the truth is that it’s enviable, and we should take note of many things because it has top-level professionals at all levels.
“So, this isn’t about going out for a barbecue, it’s about proposing a real project in which Leo Messi is a strategic partner for the club.
“The people around Leo Messi and those who make decisions with him have a project, for Leo Messi to be a strategic partner in all areas where we urgently need to increase revenue.”
No es tracta de començar de zero.
Es tracta de reiniciar.
Avui arrenca el #Moviment42! Suma-t’hi!
Defensar el Barça és defensar el que és teu. 🔵🔴 pic.twitter.com/bOwXxrgFMe
— Marc Ciria i Roig (@CiriaMarc) December 16, 2025
Highlighting the kind of impact that the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner would have on the club’s finances, Ciria elaborated:
“Just one fact: we are generating €994 million in revenue. In the 17-18 season, with what I consider to be the worst board of directors in the club’s history, we generated €990 million.
“If I apply only inflation and the cost of living, Barça should be generating €1.2 billion in revenue today.
“Either we realise that Leo Messi is strategic, not just for today, but for the future of the club and to protect and preserve the ownership model, or we are not understanding the world of sport.”
On whether if he sees Messi’s return to Barcelona in a playing capacity, Ciria acknowledged that the decision was not up to him, saying:
“That will be decided by the sporting management together with him, not by Marc Ciria. This changes things….”
“I would love Leo Messi to say goodbye stadium by stadium as a Barcelona player, but if that cannot happen, then as an institutional and commercial figure who will give us the resources we need.”
Concluding, when asked if he had received any response from Messi regarding his plan, Ciria replied:
“That’s for later (laughs). Not all the answers today. We will have answers, of course we will, we will fine-tune things and I am sure that Leo wants to return to Barça. And Barça needs Leo.”