Statement of FC Barcelona’s Official Fan Club (Penya Blaugrana Tbilisi)
Our organization has been operating in accordance with Georgian legislation for almost 11 years. At the request of FC Barcelona, we chose the organizational-legal form of a non-entrepreneurial (non-commercial) legal entity (also known as a “non-governmental organization,” or NGO). Barcelona grants certain benefits to our fan club and to each of its members, including discounts on official FC Barcelona products.
Recently, a draft law was registered by Georgian Dream in the Parliament of Georgia, located at 8 Rustaveli Avenue in Tbilisi, which creates the following reality for our fan club:
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The benefit provided by FC Barcelona to the fan club and its members is considered a grant;
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To receive a grant, both the grant provider (Barcelona) and the grant recipient (the fan club and/or its members) must obtain prior approval from the Georgian authorities;
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Receiving a grant (i.e. a discount) without prior approval may result in up to 6 years of imprisonment for the fan club member;
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If a fan club member uses a Barcelona-provided discount at Spotify Camp Nou, the club museum, a store, or any other location without prior approval from the Georgian authorities, they may face up to 6 years of imprisonment;
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If a fan club member becomes aware that another member used a Barcelona discount without prior approval and does not inform Georgian law enforcement authorities, they may face up to 6 years of imprisonment;
No, this is not a joke.
We fully understand that the purpose of the legislative changes is not to imprison Barcelona fans, and it is highly unlikely that anyone will be interested in whether Joan Laporta agreed the discount amount in advance with the Georgian authorities. However, considering the severity of the penalties, we are forced to take temporary (hopefully) measures. In the coming days, before the new law enters into force, membership for all fan club members will be temporarily suspended. Each member will be informed about the legislative changes and will then decide individually whether to continue their membership. If the number of members falls below 70, Barcelona will be forced to revoke our official fan club status.
Additionally, we will of course try to persuade Joan Laporta to negotiate with Georgian Dream and obtain permission to grant, for example, a 25% discount on a Barcelona museum tour, as fan clubs around the world currently enjoy 🙂
As for registering our organization in any registry: we are law-abiding people, but frankly, registering somewhere feels like too much effort 🙂
https://i.redd.it/41oibdl8zfgg1.jpeg
Posted by GRed-saintevil
4 Comments
## TL;DR:
Under Georgia’s proposed “foreign grants” law, an FC Barcelona fan discount can legally count as a foreign grant, meaning using a discount at Camp Nou without prior government approval could theoretically get you **up to 6 years in prison**. The official Tbilisi Barça fan club is suspending memberships because football fandom has accidentally wandered into felony territory.
Wth are we living in fr. GD makes me sick to my stomach everyday. I wish nothing but the worst for GD members
GD are rats, plain and simple.
I am not staying quite updated on the matter, so I might be wrong, but afaik:
1. The new “grants law” isn’t a new one, they are proposing amendments to the old grants law.
2. Nothing is confirmed yet, the amendments may be rejected, revised etc.
Just thought I’d clarify the title.
On a side note, it does look like the law is designed to prevent some potential financing loopholes for the NGOs that GD’s been targeting with the foreign agent law. Doubt FC Barcelona fans fall into the list here, but that’s certainly a valid edge case.