 Main entrance, with the multi-sport pavilion at the right side | |
 | |
| Location | Sant Joan Despí Barcelona |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 41°22′33″N 02°03′08″E / 41.37583°N 2.05222°E |
| Owner | FC Barcelona |
| Type | Football training ground |
| Construction | |
| Opened | 2006 |
| Construction cost | €77.5 million |
| Tenants | |
| FC Barcelona (training) (2006-) | |
| Website | |
| C.E. Joan Gamper | |
The Ciutat Esportiva Joan Gamper (Catalan pronunciation: [siwˈtat əspuɾˈtiβə ʒuˈaŋ ˈɡampəɾ]) is the training ground and academy base of Spanish football club FC Barcelona. It was officially opened on 1 June 2006, and was named in honor of Joan Gamper, founder of the club.
Located in Sant Joan Despí (Baix Llobregat, Province of Barcelona) to the west of central Barcelona and north of the city's airport, and covering 163.650 m², it is used since 2006 for youth team training and matches and since January 2009 for the first team training. It is also used by many of the other sports teams at the club including Basketball, Handball and Futsal who use facilities such as the multi-sports pavilion. Now that this facility is fully operational, all the youth teams that previously used the Camp Nou facilities, mainly the Mini Estadi and the Palau Blaugrana, train there. In 2019, the Johan Cruyff Stadium opened next to the Ciutat Esportiva to replace the Mini Estadi as a matchday venue for Barcelona B and Barcelona Femení.
FC Barcelona's first team moved to this facility on 19 January 2009.[1] This brought to an end a 30-year history that the first team had of training on the small pitch (known as the La Masia pitch) annexed to the Camp Nou. The first team facilities are the same as those at the Camp Nou and at the start of the 2009/2010 season it included a full pool and saunas for player recuperation.
By 2011 a new residence[2] was opened on site, housing the FC Barcelona's youth players who previously boarded at La Masia. This will include living space for around 85 players.
The land occupied by the Ciutat Esportiva was purchased by the club in 1989 and is just 4.5 km away from the Camp Nou and is directly connected by the road between Barcelona and Sant Joan Despí.
The Ciutat Esportiva eventually cost 68 million euros, of which 25.6 corresponded to urbanization and 42.5 to the total construction costs. The club sold two plots of land, the first on 21 June 2002 and the second on 20 February 2003, for values of 29.7 and 15.9 million euros, respectively to cover part of the costs of the operation. The rest of the money was invested directly by the club, an amount of 22.5 million euros.
- ^ "First team moves into new Ciudad Deportiva training venue". Archived from the original on 20 September 2011. Retrieved 20 January 2009.
- ^ "The Masia of the 21st century". Archived from the original on 21 August 2011. Retrieved 20 January 2009.