What does the ‘OR’ on Barcelona’s jersey in El Clásico against Real Madrid mean?

Ever since signing its sponsorship deal with Spotify, FC Barcelona has adopted a unique commercial strategy whenever it faces Real Madrid in Spain’s Clásico. Together with the Swedish streaming giant, the Catalan club releases a special-edition jersey featuring the emblem or logo of a major music artist.

The first musician to receive the honor was Drake in October 2022. For the return fixture later that season, Barcelona wore the logo of Motomami, one of Rosalía’s albums. The Rolling Stones, Karol G, Coldplay, Travis Scott and Ed Sheeran followed, and now, for Sunday’s showdown, the featured artist will be Olivia Rodrigo.

The 23-year-old California singer has quickly become one of the defining names in international pop despite her young age. In fact, she did not begin her professional career as a singer, but as an actress. Rodrigo was just 13 when she rose to fame on Disney Channel thanks to her role as Paige Olvera in Bizaardvark. She later appeared in the series created to revive High School Musical.

During that period, she wrote the song All I Want, which ultimately became a clear sign of what her future would look like. The track went viral across social media and, in 2021, Rodrigo decided to release her first solo single. No one expected that, within just one day, she would break Spotify’s record for the biggest non-Christmas debut.

Her first album arrived a few months later. With SOUR, Rodrigo won three Grammy Awards, including Best New Artist, and cemented her place on the global stage. She reinforced that success with her second album, GUTS, which led to her first world tour across major arenas.

Her musical style blends 2000s influences with modern rebellious energy, backed by more than 60 million monthly Spotify listeners. Rodrigo combines confessional ballads in the vein of Taylor Swift with much heavier sounds reminiscent of No Doubt. Her aesthetic is also carefully curated, even though she frequently wears secondhand clothing and promotes responsible consumption. She is also outspoken in her criticism of ICE, something that resonates strongly with many young people in the United States.

While in Barcelona promoting her albumYou Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love, Rodrigo asked to meet the Barcelona women’s team players and even posed for photos with them before performing a surprise concert at Barcelona’s Teatre Grec after selling out four nights at Palau Sant Jordi.

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