With five Champions League cups behind the cabinet glass and 23 La Primera trophies keeping them company, Barça has never been stronger. From a legendary newspaper advertisement back in 1899 and the controversial status of national revolutionary, to the flattering label of the All-Time Club World Ranking’s first place, the club has certainly earned its title of the true Catalan symbol. Globally supported and worshiped, the glorious virtuousness of FC Barcelona proves that Spain’s most beloved football team is definitely more than a club.
If exploring the lush history of the Catalan capital for the first time, don’t stop at the Picasso museum – The Barcelona FC Camp Nou Experience is just as significant for understanding the unique culture, tradition and temperament of Barcelona.
A First-Hand Meeting With Blaugrana’s Giants
Barcelona FC Stadium and Museum Tour will throw you straight into the middle of the biggest sports spectacle in the world. Moreover, this specially designed tour offers a glimpse of the behind-the-scenes action and provides a unique opportunity of getting a deeper insight into the giants of world-class football and their elaborate success story.
With only one ticket, the Barcelona FC Camp Nou Experience is a complete one. You’ll get to witness the history of Barça unfolding in the club’s official museum, as well as discover the stadium’s more intimate hanging spots. The tour is self-guided, meaning that you’ll get to steer your own ship throughout the journey.
With no official guides to spoil the solemn atmosphere of the sports shrine that Camp Nou is, you can explore the place with a little help of bright yellow barriers that propose guidelines and interactive boards to keep you informed about what you’re looking at. For a full experience, purchase an audio-guide at the start desk before embarking on a journey. Here’s a teaser to get you excited.
Start Off With A 3D Virtual Experience
At the very beginning, the tour opens with a 3D show that puts you directly to the pitch of the most cheered Barça matches of all time. If surprising your sports-loving kids with a once in a lifetime football journey, the Virtual Experience will sweep them right off of their kicking feet. However, you should know that no narration is provided during the show, which is why you should be prepared to answer your little footballers’ questions about the shootage previewed.
Smell the Fear at the Away Team Changing Room
Smell the sweat of defeat in the stadium’s changing room facilities. The tour grants you access to the private rooms where the away team does the final preparations before the start of the match. Unfortunately, for your football-worshiping heart, the official home team changing room is not open for public. Still, the audio-guide will paint you a picture of the spectacular meeting room, as well as a spa, a treatment room and the team’s pharmacy.
Have a Pre-Match Prayer in the Team’s Chapel
Catalans take pride in their religious background, and the players of FC Barcelona are not different. The Barcelona FC Camp Nou Experience thus allows a visitor to take a peek at the stadium’s chapel and feel a dash of the pre-match atmosphere. Introduced in 1958 and blessed by Pope John Paul, the Camp Nou chapel is certainly one of the most special places to help you understand the spirit of competitive sports.
Feel the Adrenaline Pumping Through the Pitch Tunnel
The home of the celebrated team from 1957, Camp Nou is one of the most breath-taking sports attractions all around the globe. In Spain, however, as well as Europe, the stadium is the largest one, and has a seating capacity of almost 100,000. But the authentic thrill of attending a football match is never better experienced than on the inside of its tunnel leading to the pitch. To feel the adrenaline-pumping rush just like Barça players do minutes before the game starts, be sure not to miss this special opportunity.
Take a Seat on the Dugout Benches
While on the pitch, take a chance to observe the vast greenness of the battlefield from the perspective of a team manager. Included in the tour and immensely exciting, the Dugouts are the benches sitting on the side of the field. It’s not until you get over there that you’ll realize how huge the football pitch actually is – the one on the Camp Nou is 105 m long and 68 m wide, with its stands 48 metres high.
Visit the Press Room and the Mixed Zone Where the Epilogue Takes Place
Stopping at the press room for a little while, the tour invites you to experience live what you’ve probably already seen on the small screens hundreds of times. The official briefing area is spacious enough to host 120 journalists. Public relations are being conducted at the Mixed Zone as well, where the journalists are allowed to interview players minutes after the match.
Play a Commentator at the Press Box
Outflanking the pitch, the press boxes are from where all the drama is being broadcasted live to our screens. Feel the nail-biting enthusiasm that the commentators share with us each match, and, if feeling playful, have a taste of this action-packed profession.
Lounge about with the Club’s Sponsors at the Foundation Room
At this area, you’ll get to sense the nerves kicking out of anticipation before the match begins, just like the club’s sponsors do.
Join Ronaldinho at the President’s Box for a Glass of Champagne
If feeling a bit more posh than a sponsor, the President’s Box will certainly have some VIP seats reserved for both you and your plus one. It’s simply the best view of the pitch, and the most luxurious one as well. Fancy sitting on the edge of your seat in the deciding moments of the match with a celebrated guest of honour by your side, sipping some champagne?
Acknowledge the 5 Star Plaque
Camp Nou doesn’t display only the art it has been honoured with, but also a plaque of its achievements. Much like stars given to hotels to rank their unique hospitality, sports stars are being handed over to sporting centres to reward the warm welcome of its facilities. Needless to say that Camp Nou has 5 of them.
Celebrate the Club’s Chairman as Portrayed on Barcelona FC President’s Plaque
From Walter Wild to Josep Maria Bartomeu, the President’s Plaque unrevealed in Barça’s house of fame showcases all of the honourable leaders of the club from the very beginnings of FC Barcelona to its present days.
Join the Greats at the Barcelona FC Museum
The museum itself was built by the club’s 43th president, Josep Lluís Nuñez in 1984, and renamed to honour its creator in 2000.
It’s where the Barcelona FC Camp Nou Experience starts off with an interactive 3D cinema, and continues on with a gallery of photographs and significant documents. And, as any proper museum does, the great backspace hall of the Barcelona FC stadium exhibits the art pieces dedicated to its long-established athletic glory.
The tour hence continues straight to the original Joan Miró’s lithograph from 1974 that honours the club’s glorious past, as well as other pieces created by some of the greatest local artists like Dalí and Tàpies. By proceeding forward, you’ll find yourself surrounded with a collection of Barça memorabilia, just before the big finish and the most exhilarating part of the tour – the club’s trophy room.
So far, the museum has attracted a millions of visitors from all over the world, and currently, it is the most visited one in Barcelona, with an insignificant backlog in comparison to the Catalan’s favourite, the Picasso museum.
With a rich history, a generous fare and a booming art scene, Barcelona has yet another perk to add to the list – to experience its unparagoned sports life, the Camp Nou Experience is just a way to start.