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FC Barcelona youth camp controversy in Cyprus

Updated 3 times since CLSTR started tracking revisions of this situation.

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2026-08-25 11:38 UTC → 2026-08-26 11:18 UTC · added ~~removed~~

FC Barcelona announced that its youth development arm, Barça Academy, would host football training camps in Lefkoşa, Cyprus, during September 2026. The camps, titled ‘Lefkosa Camp’, are scheduled for two periods—September 7–11 and September 16–20—at the Near East University sports complex for players aged 6 to 18. The club faced significant backlash in Cyprus due to its description of the location as ‘Lefkosa, Northern Cyprus’. This terminology is considered highly sensitive due to the Turkish occupation of the area since 1974. In response, the Cyprus Football Association (CFA) is investigating whether the camp violates FIFA or UEFA regulations regarding the recognition of territories. Greek and Cypriot media have characterized the move as a normalization of an unrecognized entity. Political groups, including ELAM, have condemned the event, describing the organization of sports activities in the north by an EU-based club as ‘inconceivable’. ELAM has called upon the Spanish government and the Cypriot Ministry of Foreign Affairs to intervene and cancel the camp. In the north, Turkish Cypriot Prime Minister Ünal Üstel condemned the calls for cancellation, stating that such actions attempt to prevent the youth from engaging with the world. Former Turkish Minister of Youth and Sports Mehmet Muharrem Kasapoğlu also supported the event, suggesting it could serve as a unifying example through sport. The controversy has drawn renewed attention to a 2014 incident involving then-president Joan Laporta, who faced scrutiny after comparing the political status of Catalonia to that of Northern Cyprus.

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