Could FC Barcelona be kicked out of La Liga?

FC Barcelona has been anything but a neutral bystander on the question of Catalan independence in recent years.

It has firmly nailed its colours to the mast of the movement planning a referendum on the issue on 1 October - a referendum declared illegal by the central government in Madrid.


But its position has raised more pressing questions as the situation has become more heated, with militarised Civil Guard police dispatched to arrest pro-secessionist officials and seize referendum materials.


Wouldn't an independent Catalonia deprive Spain's La Liga 
of one of its most prestigious clubs?


And what about the fans of the world-famous El Clásico grudge matches between Barça and arch- rival Real Madrid, a series in which the latter is tantalisingly just ahead on 95 victories to 91?


Does Catalonia want to leave Spain?


Those in charge at FC Barcelona insist they are not politicians; the club neither has an position on voting Yes for independence, nor in which league it would compete in the hypothetical situation of Catalonia seceding from Spain.!But 
in 2014 FC Barcelona joined the National Pact on the Right to Decide, a platform comprising political parties and civil society organisations in favour of a referendum on independence for
Catalonia.


On Wednesday, as the Civil Guard were arresting Catalan government officials, the club released perhaps its most blatantly political statement ever, saying it was defending "democracy, freedom of speech, and self-determination".


Whatever happens over the next few weeks and months, FC Barcelona seems to believe that it will always be able to choose which league it plays in.


Even if Catalans opted to leave Spain, Barça believes that Spain will never want to stop watching El Clásico.


Details later....