Few things:
-Bartou is actually a successful business man himself, and most of board member came from the business field. I don't see Font being an advantage in that regard. The club already doing well in getting revenues and Font ideas seem like a sales man campaigning than a realistic ones.
-Font also doesn't really campaign better than Laporta, his campaign depends a lot on attacking current board, just like Laporta did in 2015, except this time Font isn't even running against current board. His approach is weird.
-His proposed plans aren't solid plans either, his putting all his eggs on Xavi basket. What if Xavi turns out a terrible coach? What is he going to do? Other than that he talks same generalised ideas of bringing back La Masia. The truth is current board actually tried that approach, they are probably the biggest spenders on youth in any board before. It is just they fail to execute it.
Bartou actually cared about La Masia and Barca DNA, but he is just terrible in developing them. Although I think we are doing better with Kluivert.
Font is selling same thing but what makes us think he will do better than them.
-Pep publicly endorsed Laporta last election, he is a great friend of his, if there is any chance he will come back it will be under him. Pep will face a huge decision for his future in 2021. I don't think the idea of coming back is bad either. And he might not come as a coach necessary, he can act as a SD or board member if he wants (and not necessary right away, but midway during his term). Pep actually said before he is interested in coming back in different position.
Also Laporta has larger network related to club which would help him.
-Laporta also seem to be playing politics in this election, he knows the effect of media and having powerful people endorsing you in elections. He has made peace with Rossell, he stopped attacking media and lowered his tune with current board. I think he will try to win media on his side which can alone win him elections. This isn't bad strategy either. Laporta is favorite to win election by landslide, huge advantage over Font and all he need is to play it safe with media so that he won't fuck up. There is more in campaigning than going to podcasts and talking to Argentinian media
-Also, what is different between 2003 and current Liverpool team? They rebuilt with same approach we did in 2003. Sport project in front of you and follow through it. The main difference is we started it with star and stronger academy than they did. They hired a more proven coach.
I don't have a problem with people calling out Laporta, but the whole "Font" and big plans are just bunch of bs IMO, his campaigns is nothing but a selling pitch. I don't hold that against him btw since he need to sell himself to socios while being completely unknown, but at the end he needs to put a competent team if he wants to execute anything.
It comes down to this: If you think Font can put a world class team while thinking Laporta is outdated it is cool to prefer him, if you think Laporta is the proven choice and can repeat success while Font is just a full of bs type it is normal to prefer Laporta.
Do you trust Xavi to have complete authority over sporting project that you risk everything with him? Or you want to start with SD who start sporting project and put Xavi or someone else as coach?
At the end I think both seem like better choices than current boar, so at least there is that.
First of all, Guillem Ballague is a reputable, well-known journalist and not some Argentinian media that no one listens to.
Here are a few points as an answer:
1) There was no 'sporting project' in the same sense we used it today when Laporta was elected.
Laporta promised Beckham, that was enough back then. A big promise was enough to win you the elections.
Of course he didn't deliver Beckham (hence he has a track record of making promises unable to deliver), but Ronaldinho instead, which worked in our favor. But that's serendipity, and not planning.
Yes, under him some good signings were made, the team became competitive again, won CL etc
But, if it was not for Pep, Laporta' s management would be just Okish.
Pep was also serendipity. Credit to Laporta for taking the risk with someone so inexperienced, but no one could imagine back them that Pep was the new coaching genius, the new Messiah of football.
It doesn't seem to me that his actions were much different from Rossel - Bartomeu.
There was as much 'planning' and 'project' involved in signing Ronalidhno and Eto, as it was in signing Coutinho and Dembele. The former worked, the latter did not, but not because of a plan that was vindicated in the former case.
So, let's seriously take into account to what extent and which aspects we give credit to Laporta for.
And let's think how much of a 'project' he put in place
2) World has changed hell lot since '03.
Liverpool's fate the last years is revealing.
When FSG took over, Liverpool had Roy Hodgson as a head coach, Kenny Daglish as interim, were mid-table, terrible to watch, with no identity and no aspirations.
Since then, they put a proper 'sporting project' in place, with people of expertise employed in all different departments, respecting each department's autonomy and making each of them a cog into the wheel for the whole institution to work.
Most notably, they started a robust 'Data and Analytics' department before everyone else, hiring even people with PhD in theoretical physics from Cambridge, and now they are light years ahead of other clubs in that department.
Anyone who has seen this, who has seen how much a project and a plan can transform a club, should demand precisely the same for Barca.
And the only candidate promising that atm is Font.
3) Font does not say we hire Xavi and throw all our faith on him.
That's precisely what Laporta says about Pep (which is a fake promise, see below why), and that's of course insufficient, it's an old-fashioned promise that has nothing to do with a fully fleshed project as Liverpool's.
Font has said many times that coach alone is not enough, that you need all the other elements in place before you can give the keys to someone.
Listen to the interview i posted. When asked about Xavi becoming the coach now under Bartomeu, he said 'yes, but that's not only what i mean', outlining that coach alone is not enough.
He said countless times he will try to find the right people all around the globe who can hold all the key positions to make a project work, on the business side (CEO) as well as the sporting side, and that's also not only a SD, but people responsible in all different departments from the ground up (just as Liverpool did it).
It's at best a misrepresentation to say that Font is promising Xavi as a coach and that's it.
He started working on the project he is presenting since 2013. At least this shows some seriousness.
3) Pep is eternally grateful to Laporta for giving him the chance to coach the first team. And that's why he endorsed him, and he will continue to support him.
But does that mean he is coming back to coach Barca?
Pep is NOT coming back as a coach of the first team ever.
He has said it so many times. He will come back to retire and coach youth teams. Not as a SD, or in any other post.
Lapota knows all that, but he is deliberately hiding it from media and fans.
Was he given the confirmation of Pep that he is coming back to coach? No! He is just name-dropping (Contrary to Font, who has discussed and agreed with Xavi before throwing his name)
That's why he is using 'cloudy' wordings (like 'i have a feeling that Pep will ...') which he can take back later on, after this fake promise wins him the election.
And that's my problem with his campaign (apart from the fact that it's old-fashioned).
He is trying to gain an illegitimate advantage.
And of course Font is not stupid. Anyone thinks if he could have Pep back, he would not take that?
He even said that in the interview i posted, he said i would love to have Pep, but he does not want to come back.
4) You say Bartomeu and co were successful in business. Idk about that, but we all know how they mishandled Barcelona's budget and how they put their own interest before the club's (like Pjanic-Arthur swap).
Do we have any guarantee that Font will succeed on that front? No.
But his experience with Delta partners, in telecommunications and business, seems already much more substantial that the experience all of Laporta, Rossell, Bartomeu had before taking the helm.
Finally, I am not expert in finances and business, but what Font is saying seems pretty reasonable: that Barca as an economic institution is still a medium sized company compared to multi-nationals, and despite the revenue it does not generate enough benefits, that economic impact is hampered by inter-mediation of agents in selling services and products, and that the brand name of Fc Barcelona has not been sufficiently monetized all over the globe.
Maybe someone here who is related to the field can tell us if that's a sound claim.
