Barcelona travel to Madrid as extreme winds cause chaos

A spell of extreme winds in Catalonia has forced FC Barcelona to abandon the team’s training ground ahead of the Copa del Rey meeting with Atlético Madrid on Thursday. With dangerous conditions forecast, the team opted to travel to Madrid earlier in the week to continue preparations for the game.

ESPN reports that a wall at Barcelona’s Cuitat Esportiva Joan Gamper training center has collapsed as a result of the strong winds. No one was injured in the incident but the wall has brought down a section of fencing between the facility and a public road.

The winds also put a stop on the construction work being done on the exterior of Camp Nou on Thursday. Renovation work continued inside the stadium, it has been reported, as the club pushes to get the works completed before the end of 2027.

Heavy winds hamper Barça preparation

Barcelona had initially planned to travel to the Spanish capital on Thursday, the day of the Copa del Rey game, but the bad forecast convinced officials to fly a day earlier. It proved a wise decision with winds of over 60mph (100km/h) causing chaos in the region. By midday Thursday more than 60 people had been injured in weather-related incidents, with 20 of those requiring hospital treatment.

“Due to the severe winds, the training ground has suffered structural damage, including the collapse of a section of a wall and a perimeter fence on the road Francesc Macià, in the area between Pitch 3 and the women’s first team training area,” a statement from the club reads.

“No personal injuries have been reported. Teams have already arrived at the site to ensure the safety of the affected area and to carry out an initial assessment of the damage.”

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