Barcelona backs Catalan vote despite league threat

FC Barcelona says it still supports Catalonia’s push to vote on secession from the rest of Spain despite warnings that independence would mean the club’s exclusion from the Spanish league.

Barcelona defender Gerard Pique, playing for Catalonia. Picture: Getty

Barcelona says it “was one of the first institutions to declare it was in favour of the right to decide.”

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Catalonia’s regional government wants to hold a nonbinding referendum on independence on November 9.

A Spanish court has suspended the vote to rule on its legality.

On Tuesday, the president of the Spanish football league said Barcelona and the other football teams in the northeastern region would be excluded from Spanish competitions if Catalonia became a separate state.

A number of Barcelona’s current squad, including Sergio Busquets, Gerard Pique and Jordi Alba all played in Catalonia’s 4-1 win over Cape Verde in December 2013.

Chelsea midfielder Cesc Fabregas and Stoke City forward Bojan Krkic also featured.