FC Barcelona did not say it would cut ties with Israel

Context

Despite the claim circulating on Instagram in November, FC Barcelona has not announced that it has cut all ties with Israel. 

A social media post reads, "FC Barcelona has cut all ties with Israel," followed by an unattributed quote: "It is not a war, it is genocide. We must not only denounce it but act." 

Two photographs can be seen side-by-side beneath the quote. On the left is Joan Laporta, president of FC Barcelona, and on the right is Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The post is being widely shared on Facebook (example archived here) and Instagram (examples archived here and here).

The claim gathered significant traction on TikTok when it was posted on September 21 (archived here), gathering more than 495,000 views. 

In fact 

No such statement is visible on the Barcelona FC website or social media pages. 

The claim stems from a political decision made in 2023, not a football-related one. 

In February 2023, the Associated Press reported that then-Mayor Ada Colau announced that the city of Barcelona would suspend its official ties with Israel, which would impact its twin-city agreement with Tel Aviv.

The Associated Press quoted Colau as saying that she could not be "indifferent to the systematic violation of the fundamental rights of the Palestinian population."

The Catalan News Agency (CNA) reported that the announcement was made during an event in the city hall.

In September 2023, under the new leadership of Mayor Jaume Collboni, the twin city agreement with Tel Aviv was restored. 

A very similar quote referenced in the social media post was published by the CNA months later, on November 24, 2023, in an article on Barcelona's City Council suspending "institutional relations" with Israel. The quote was attributed to Colau, not Laporta. CNA reported that the council's move would not affect the twin city agreement with Tel Aviv. 

Colau was quoted as saying, "It is not a war. It is genocide, and as President Pedro Sánchez said, it is unacceptable, and we must not only denounce it but act."

The proposal to suspend ties with Israel is detailed on the city council website and was shared on their social media the same day. FC Barcelona is not referred to anywhere in the document published online or posted on X. 

FC Barcelona and Barcelona City Council did not immediately respond to a Logically Facts request for comment. 

The verdict 

The claim is false. Politicians in Barcelona have taken actions on Israel, including suspending a twin city agreement with Tel Aviv, which was later restored, but the football club has not.