The Esportiu Europa Club in Barcelona has put more than a collection campaign on the table: it has drawn a red line. The club, recently promoted to First RFEF with its male and female teams, has presented “Som La Resistència”, a micromelezgo initiative with which it seeks to raise between 150,000 and 300,000 euros. But beyond the figures, the message is political and emotional: managed by its people, in a football increasingly colonized by foreign capital.
“Europe has no owner: it is its people,” recalled Hèctor Ibar, president of the entity, during the presentation. The phrase summarizes a philosophy that clashes frontally with the sports corporate model that dominates the current panorama. While other teams respond to Swedish, Japanese or American billionaire funds, Europe clings to its popular identity. But to do it, you need economic support.
The campaign, articulated through the drip platform, appeals to the pride of belonging to the escaped fans, but also to the collective imaginary of the usual football. “We are at a key moment in our history,” Ibar warned. “We can go back and resign ourselves, or look up and be the Girona.” The club wants to grow, but without selling.
The contributions also have tax benefits: a donation of 250 euros can translate into a real expenditure of only 50. In return, those who contribute more than 200 euros will appear in a special edition of the club’s shirt; Already from 500, their names will be recorded forever in one of the walls of Nou Sardenya.
But the threat is not just financial. The RFEF demands that, as of January 15, 2026, all matches are played on natural grass. The Nou Srdenya, built on an underground parking, has artificial grass and a structural transformation would cost around one million euros. The club has achieved a moratorium to play the first round at home, but there are no guarantees beyond. “We do not contemplate playing in another stadium,” said Alex, spokesman for the entity, firmly.
While they work with the Barcelona City Council and with it, another of the founding clubs of the League, also affected by this regulation, in Europe they trust that the mobilization of their hobby reinforces its institutional position and avoids an unwanted move.
“We are like the irreducible village of Astérix and Obélix,” said Ibar, “and if they had their magical potion, we have the strength of our people to stand up to the new Romans: modern football.”
EC Europe not only wants to compete: he wants to resist. And to achieve this, it needs romantic football not just a nostalgia, but a real support network.
