FC Barcelona and their co-organizer BCN Sports Services, have left families wondering what was it all for?
Through its international outreach Barca Academy, FC Barcelona and BCN Sports operated multiple academies in Canada and Australia. All of which have now ceased operations as BCN Sports claims they are filing for voluntary insolvency leaving families out millions of dollars for camps, seasons and an ill-fated trip to Spain.
Since the on-set of restrictions due to COVID-19, BCN Sports has quickly acted to use the pandemic to abscond with fees and take steps to shutter their operations and disappear. Websites and Facebook pages have been deleted and their executives have been incommunicado; in some cases even going so far as to wipe BCN Sports from their LinkedIn profiles.
But concurrent with the nefarious actions of BCN Services, FC Barcelona has been offering their support to the families while also distancing themselves from their, supposedly "insolvent", co-organizer.
After a look at emails from both FC Barcelona and BCN Sports Services, one can quickly see the cliched "bad divorce with the kids being caught in the middle" scenario.
On May 12 BCN Sports sent an identical message to Australian clients informing that their academies were immediately closed. FC Barcelona followed suit with a repeat of their message on May 13.
And yet, as of today, families see nothing being done. BCN Sports has yet to file any insolvency documents in Canada or Australia. And FC Barcelona, for all their promises of support, hasn't produced any evidence they are doing anything but watching from the sidelines as families try to get refunds through disputing the charges with their credit card companies.
But, as if it's not enough that families have been caught in the middle of the FC Barcelona vs BCN Sports divorce, BCN Sports has sunk to challenging the credit card disputes. What purpose does it serve, for a company that is claims they are insolvent, to challenge the refund request? It only goes to further victimize the affected families, prolonging the resolution to a stressful situation.
BCN Sports Services co-owner, Fransico "Patxi" Cervera, has been quoted as saying "We have not disappeared". Yet their offices, in North York, were found abandoned at the end of April. He has also been quoted saying "We're not disappearing or running away [with] the money." But no one has seen a refund and why challenge charge disputes if it is not BCN Sport's intent to take the money?
The families have so many questions that remain unanswered, that they are wondering - What did co-owners Francisco "Patxi" Cervera and Stephen Tung really plan to do all along? Cervera and Tung are now operating Avanza Sports Management which is powering the Real Madrid Soccer Camps in the United States. Those clinics are the international offshoot of the famed Madrid club, renowned for being a fierce rival of FC Barcelona both on and off the field.
Families are also questioning how FC Barcelona can be so apathetic. FC Barcelona exercised substantial control over Barca Academies in Canada and Australia. The club provided and paid for the Technical Directors. The required uniforms, websites, pamphlets, advertisements and receipts all promoted the Barca brand. But in a statement to one news agency, a consultant that handles communications for the club stressed that FC Barcelona is not legally or financially obligated to resolve the situation. The families involved believed they were dealing with FC Barcelona relying on BCN Sports only as an agent of the club, or in the clubs words "our partner".
In Barca Academy publications, and social media posts, there is a predominate reference to the #BarcaValues. That phrase is what supporters of the FC Barcelona approach to training, would say sums up everything that has made FC Barcelona, Barca Academy and all of their endeavours so successful over the years. To see it all thrown away, at the expense of children and the parents who supported their children's dreams, leaves children, and parents alike, all asking the same question - what was it all for?
#BCNSports @BCNSportsIntl #BCNSportsIntl #BCNFCResidency #FranciscoCervera #StephenTung #THPCapital #AvanzaSports #RealMadridUSA #rmfclinicsusa
#FCBarcelona #BarcaAcademy #BarcaEscola #FCBEscola #BarcaValues #PlayBarca
#DoTheRightThing #StrongerTogether #WeAreUnited
#abandoned #angry #anxiety #betrayed #cheated #communication #corrupt #criminal #deceptive #defrauded #devastated #disappointed #disgusted #disheartened #dishonest #disrespect #distraught #distrust #drained #fraud #fraudulent #frustrated #furious #greed #heartbroken #inconsiderate #inhumane #irresponsible #immoral #nightmare #nonhuman #premeditated #ridiculous #robbed #sad #sacrifice #saddened #scammed #shameful #shattered #shocking #snowed #stressed #stupid #terrible #theft #traitors #tricked #unethical #unfair #unjust #unprofesional #upset
Through its international outreach Barca Academy, FC Barcelona and BCN Sports operated multiple academies in Canada and Australia. All of which have now ceased operations as BCN Sports claims they are filing for voluntary insolvency leaving families out millions of dollars for camps, seasons and an ill-fated trip to Spain.
Since the on-set of restrictions due to COVID-19, BCN Sports has quickly acted to use the pandemic to abscond with fees and take steps to shutter their operations and disappear. Websites and Facebook pages have been deleted and their executives have been incommunicado; in some cases even going so far as to wipe BCN Sports from their LinkedIn profiles.
But concurrent with the nefarious actions of BCN Services, FC Barcelona has been offering their support to the families while also distancing themselves from their, supposedly "insolvent", co-organizer.
After a look at emails from both FC Barcelona and BCN Sports Services, one can quickly see the cliched "bad divorce with the kids being caught in the middle" scenario.
- On April 30th, BCN Sports emailed Canadian clients on the closure of academies in Canada. The statement read "Despite our efforts to find ways to make our project financially viable, we are forced to stop our operations, and given the position of the company we intend to file for voluntary insolvency"
- On May 2, FC Barcelona posted an announcement on the webpage confirming the closure and thanking everyone for "sharing the experience"
- On May 4, FC Barcelona emailed Canadian clients its position on the Barca Academy closures in Canada. That message stated "Despite the best efforts made by Futbol Club Barcelona to try to give continuity to the project, our partner, BCN SPORTS, has irrevocably made its decision to definitively close all academies."
So these two organizations, one of which is accepted to be one of the wealthiest clubs in the world, could not come up with a plan other than to shut the doors - leaving families out millions in paid fees and nothing to show for it.
But just as families felt powerless, FC Barcelona sends them a glimmer of hope. In an email to families on May 11, FC Barcelona stated "We are going to use all our resources, including legal action if necessary, to ensure that BCN SPORTS deals with all the financial consequences of its decision, and resolves the problem that has arisen has quickly as possible. We wish to state that Futbol Club Barcelona will do everything possible to make sure that BCN SPORTS reimburses all of the amounts corresponding to inscription fees for cancelled activities."
On May 12 BCN Sports sent an identical message to Australian clients informing that their academies were immediately closed. FC Barcelona followed suit with a repeat of their message on May 13.
And yet, as of today, families see nothing being done. BCN Sports has yet to file any insolvency documents in Canada or Australia. And FC Barcelona, for all their promises of support, hasn't produced any evidence they are doing anything but watching from the sidelines as families try to get refunds through disputing the charges with their credit card companies.
But, as if it's not enough that families have been caught in the middle of the FC Barcelona vs BCN Sports divorce, BCN Sports has sunk to challenging the credit card disputes. What purpose does it serve, for a company that is claims they are insolvent, to challenge the refund request? It only goes to further victimize the affected families, prolonging the resolution to a stressful situation.
BCN Sports Services co-owner, Fransico "Patxi" Cervera, has been quoted as saying "We have not disappeared". Yet their offices, in North York, were found abandoned at the end of April. He has also been quoted saying "We're not disappearing or running away [with] the money." But no one has seen a refund and why challenge charge disputes if it is not BCN Sport's intent to take the money?
The families have so many questions that remain unanswered, that they are wondering - What did co-owners Francisco "Patxi" Cervera and Stephen Tung really plan to do all along? Cervera and Tung are now operating Avanza Sports Management which is powering the Real Madrid Soccer Camps in the United States. Those clinics are the international offshoot of the famed Madrid club, renowned for being a fierce rival of FC Barcelona both on and off the field.
Families are also questioning how FC Barcelona can be so apathetic. FC Barcelona exercised substantial control over Barca Academies in Canada and Australia. The club provided and paid for the Technical Directors. The required uniforms, websites, pamphlets, advertisements and receipts all promoted the Barca brand. But in a statement to one news agency, a consultant that handles communications for the club stressed that FC Barcelona is not legally or financially obligated to resolve the situation. The families involved believed they were dealing with FC Barcelona relying on BCN Sports only as an agent of the club, or in the clubs words "our partner".
In Barca Academy publications, and social media posts, there is a predominate reference to the #BarcaValues. That phrase is what supporters of the FC Barcelona approach to training, would say sums up everything that has made FC Barcelona, Barca Academy and all of their endeavours so successful over the years. To see it all thrown away, at the expense of children and the parents who supported their children's dreams, leaves children, and parents alike, all asking the same question - what was it all for?
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| Francisco "Patxi" Cervera (2nd from left) & Stephen Tung (2nd from right) |
#BCNSports @BCNSportsIntl #BCNSportsIntl #BCNFCResidency #FranciscoCervera #StephenTung #THPCapital #AvanzaSports #RealMadridUSA #rmfclinicsusa
#FCBarcelona #BarcaAcademy #BarcaEscola #FCBEscola #BarcaValues #PlayBarca
#DoTheRightThing #StrongerTogether #WeAreUnited
#abandoned #angry #anxiety #betrayed #cheated #communication #corrupt #criminal #deceptive #defrauded #devastated #disappointed #disgusted #disheartened #dishonest #disrespect #distraught #distrust #drained #fraud #fraudulent #frustrated #furious #greed #heartbroken #inconsiderate #inhumane #irresponsible #immoral #nightmare #nonhuman #premeditated #ridiculous #robbed #sad #sacrifice #saddened #scammed #shameful #shattered #shocking #snowed #stressed #stupid #terrible #theft #traitors #tricked #unethical #unfair #unjust #unprofesional #upset
#YEG #YVR #YYC #YYZ #YOW #YUL
#AlbertaSoccer #BCSoccer #OntarioSoccer #SoccerQuebec #CanadaSoccer
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