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At midday today, Joana Barbany (Barcelona, 1973) and Teresa Andreu (Barcelona, 1952) were presented as the first female Board members of Sí al futur(“Yes to the Future” in Catalan). They were presented by Víctor Font, at a press conference during the inauguration of his campaign HQ at the Olivia Balmes Hotel, Barcelona.
If the Sí al futur presidential campaign is successful, Ms Barbany and Ms Andreu will also sit on the FC Barcelona Board of Directors. The project led by Víctor Font will have the same proportion of female members as Barça’s membership does – a first in the history of the Club. In the coming days, the campaign will reveal the names of the other female Board members who will contribute that target being achieved.
Joana Barbany is currently Director-General for the Digital Society within the Catalan Government’s Ministry of Digital Policy and Public Administration. Ms Barbany is a journalist, with a Master’s in Business Communication and Digital Technologies, and postgraduate qualifications in leadership from ESADE and IESE Business Schools. Her career has been in digital communication and strategic consultancy, in both the private and public sectors; in the latter, she has recently played a leading role in promoting policies to bring women into the technology sector.
If Sí al futur wins the Presidency of FC Barcelona, Barbany will contribute her experience in, and knowledge of, digital technologies, and will take charge of normalising the presence of women at all levels of the Club.
Teresa Andreu is one of the pioneers of women’s football at Barça. In 1970-1982, she was the goalkeeper for Peña Femenina Barcelona, an unofficial FC Barcelona women’s team. She was also Chair of the Women’s Football Section at the Club and Spokesperson for the Board of Directors between 2000 and 2003, under the presidency of Joan Gaspart. She was the Chair of the Women’s Football Committee at the Catalan Football Federation between 1980 and 2005, and Chair of the Women’s Football Committee at the Spanish Football Federation between 1980 and 1998. At the international level, Teresa Andreu was a member of the UEFA Women’s Football Committee between 1990 and 2003.
Teresa Andreu’s experience and knowledge will make a valuable contribution to sporting matters and to institutional relations.
1. Name:
Joana Barbany i Freixa
2. Date and place of birth:
I’m 46 years old and I was born in Barcelona, though I have lived to the north of the city in the town of Sant Cugat del Vallès since 1999, so that feels like home now.
3. Education:
Business studies (University of Vic and University of Barcelona), journalism (Pompeu Fabra University) and a Master’s in Business Communication and Digital Technologies from the Barcelona School of Management. Later, I studied the Vicens Vives Programme at ESADE and a postgraduate course in leadership at IESE.
4. Professional field and noteworthy experience:
My work has always been related to the ICT sector and to innovation. I started out in the private sector and have been working in the public sector for the last 10 years. I have led various digital transformation programmes and, recently, have been focused on anything related to helping increase women’s presence in the sector.
5. My link to Barça:
• One of the first games that I remember at the Camp Nou was in 1984 (I was 10) in the Cup Winners’ Cup – we lost 4-1 to Metz. That’s when I decided I wanted to be a ballgirl, so I send a letter to the then-President asking what I had to do to become one. I never got a reply.
• For my hen party, in 2001, I spent a whole weekend in the Pallars region of Catalonia wearing a Luis Figo shirt – the Madrid one!
• In 2009, I ran the New York Marathon. As I was running on my own and needed extra motivation, I downloaded that May’s 6-2 win at the Bernabéu. Joaquim Ma Puyal’s Catalan-language broadcast of the build-up, the game itself and the post-match analysis kept me company that day.
• I have played football all my life: against my classmates at school and in women’s teams as an adult. When I was living in London, I played in Fulham’s youth setup. I now play field hockey.
• I’ve been able to get to three of the five Champions League finals, plus a Copa del Rey final.
6. What type of Culé are you?
I like listening to the radio whether I go to the ground or am following the match online. I am the worrying type, but I’m OPTIMISTIC!
7. Our slogan means “Yes to the Future”. What do you think is the thing Barça need to improve most urgently in your field?
I think there is a need to reconnect with the members and fans. That “magic” has been lost and there’s a degree of disenchantment. We’ve got to give people fresh hope, particularly young people. I am convinced that, in the next decade, women will play a much bigger, more decisive role – in all areas: players, club employees, members and fans.
8. Do you have a couple of suggestions for those rare times when we are thinking of something other than Barça?
• Playing sport in the open air.
• Playing a board game with one of my four children.
• The Netflix series Borgen, on the Danish political system and the price the main character has to pay to become the first woman to make it to the top as prime minister.
Joana Barbany photo gallery:
1. Name:
María Teresa Andreu i Grau
2. Date and place of birth:
I’m 68 years old and I was born in Barcelona.
3. Education:
I finished secondary school and trained as a secretary.
4. Professional field and noteworthy experience:
I have run my own company for 35 years.
5. My link to Barça:
I was a footballer for FC Barcelona for 12 years (1970 to 1982). My first coach was Antoni Ramallets. I was also a director of FC Barcelona (2000/2003). I was part of the Board’s Football Committee, with responsibility for all the Club’s football teams, from Barça B down to the Under-10s. I was also in complete control of the Academy, with its 700 boys and girls. I have been director of the Club’s non-professional sections: women’s football, athletics, rugby, field hockey and baseball. I have the honour of having persuaded the Board to approve incorporating women’s football into the Football Department, which moved it out of the nonprofessional section. I have also been a patron of the FC Barcelona Foundation. What’s more, as a director, I have represented the Club at the basketball (first team) semi-finals in Madrid. Lastly, I organised – in the Camp Nou directors’ box – the Spanish Field Hockey Federation’s end-of-season dinner. On top of my ties to FC Barcelona, I have been Chair of the Women’s Football Committee at the Catalan Football Federation (1980-2005), Chair of the Women’s Football Committee at the Royal Spanish Football Federation (1980-1999) and a member of the UEFA Women’s Football Committee between (1990-2003).
6. What type of Culé are you?
Optimistic. Encouraging. Calm. I always believe in the Barça team that I am watching on the field. I like going for dinner in the restaurants in the area surrounding the Camp Nou. I like analysing the play in the match because I know the rules of the game like the back of my hand.
7. Our slogan means “Yes to the Future”. What do you think is the thing Barça need to improve most urgently in your field?
Giving the greatest possible boost to women’s football and promoting women’s sports within the Club, whether professional or amateur. Taking the greatest possible care with the Club’s image. Representing the Club, at both the sporting and the institutional levels. Getting to know the Club, however many component parts it has, whether sporting or internal. Having good relations with the governing bodies. Having good relations with other clubs of all disciplines.
8. Do you have a couple of suggestions for those rare times when we are thinking of something other than Barça?
A sport programme on the television, whatever the sport. I like all disciplines.
Teresa Andreu photo gallery:
For more information, contact Pau Pujadas: premsa@sialfutur.cat / +34 667 182 873