The Barcelona Football Club members gave a go-ahead to the decision made by the board members to sell future merchandising and television rights in the exchange for immediate cold, hard cash. They hope to generate up to €700 million or even more according to president Joan Laporta. This is money that Barcelona are desperately in need of because as of right now, they are way over LaLiga's spending limit. Already, their spending maximum for next season is already negative to a tune of -€144 million. This means that the Catalan giants will need to shed off players and salaries if they have to bring any other players in. By selling their merchandising and TV rights, the club have basically taken out a massive mortgage on their future, to a degree no other team has done in the past.

They are basically telling investors; “ We are going to make so much money moving into the future, why don't you, dear investors give us an advance on it now.” The move could work out great because it is not necessarily a bad move, only that it is a risky one. One fact worth noting about this decision is that the individuals currently making the decisions; Laporta and his board will most likely not be around in the long-term to face the fallout just in case things do not go as per the plan but will definitely be there to enjoy the short-term benefits. 

What Barcelona are doing is a massive gamble on their future. If it wasn't, then all other big clubs will be doing the same. But they are justified in their choice of path as they have nearly €800 million worth of debt and €310 million of that is due in the next 1 year. The club does not have a wealthy owner who can put in a capital injection to bail them out. Barcelona is one of the few clubs in the world that is owned by the club members themselves. Together, the members form the governing body of the club. Thus, it is very difficult for Barca to refinance their debt. They somehow need to generate cash and they are not willing to consider letting their young stars such as Pedri, Gavi, and Ansu leave the club as they know their transfer value is likely to shoot up in a few years time. If this gamble pulls through, Laporta and the board will be remembered as geniuses who saved the club, but if things go off the plan, they will be remembered in the same way as Jose Maria Bartomeu, the former Barca president who oversaw the financial meltdown.