Xavi Pascual to leave Barça basketball

Xavi Pascual is set to leave FC Barcelona’s basketball team at the end of the season, according to multiple Spanish media reports published on May 19 and May 20. The move would end a second spell at the club after only seven months in charge. FC Barcelona had publicly backed Pascual five days earlier, saying he was the only coach being considered for the project being built for next season. Spanish newspaper El Periódico reported on May 17 that Pascual’s departure for Dubai was effectively decided and that he would pay a 300,000-euro release clause to leave. EL PAÍS and Marca separately reported the same clause figure and said his destination would be Dubai Basketball. Upday, cited in the source briefings, put the clause at more than 400,000 euros, but the other Spanish reports reviewed by Reuters-style search results converged on 300,000 euros. (eurohoops.net) ### When did Barça publicly back Pascual? FC Barcelona said on May 15 that “Xavi Pascual is the only person considered” to lead the basketball team project being developed with the club. The statement followed what the club called recent comments in media outlets, and it also repeated basketball general manager Juan Carlos Navarro’s April 10 remark: “I cannot see a future without Xavi Pascual.” (elperiodico.com) That statement now sits in contrast with subsequent reporting that Pascual had already decided to go. Eurohoops reported on May 18 that Pascual had informed club vice president Rafa Yuste of his decision and that a meeting on Monday did not change it. ### Why is the exit notable after only seven months? (fcbarcelona.com) FC Barcelona appointed Pascual in November and signed him through June 2028, according to the club’s official announcement. The club presented the hire as a return for a coach who had previously won 19 trophies with Barça in his first spell. (eurohoops.net) The second stint has been short and uneven. Barça finished the EuroLeague season with a 22-18 record and lost in the play-in stage, according to EuroLeague records. In Spain’s Liga Endesa, Barça stood third at 23-9 as of May 20, level on wins with Unicaja and Baskonia. ### What is Dubai Basketball offering? (fcbarcelona.com) Dubai Basketball is a new club founded in 2023 that plays in the EuroLeague and ABA League and stages home games at Coca-Cola Arena, according to the club’s website. The team’s site still listed Aleksander Sekulić as head coach on May 20, and the club had an ABA League semifinal game scheduled that day against Budućnost. (euroleaguebasketball.net) Marca described Dubai’s offer as the best contract for a coach in continental basketball, though it did not publish financial terms in the search excerpt reviewed here. El Periódico said Dubai’s spending power and Barcelona’s limited resources to build a stronger roster had helped persuade Pascual to leave. (dubaibasketball.com) ### Who could replace him at Barça? Sport and El Periódico named Unicaja coach Ibon Navarro and Vassilis Spanoulis among the possible replacements in reports published on May 19, according to the source briefings. Sport had also reported on May 15 that Barça issued a statement denying reports around possible contacts with Navarro. (marca.com) Mundo Deportivo, cited in the source briefings, also reported that roster planning was continuing despite the coaching uncertainty, including Mike James’s expected arrival for next season. That suggests Barça’s offseason decisions on the bench and squad are moving on parallel tracks. ### What happens next? May 20 is the next fixed date in the story because Dubai Basketball had a scheduled ABA League semifinal against Budućnost, while Barça remained in the closing stretch of the Liga Endesa regular season. (sport.es) FC Barcelona had not published a new official statement reversing its May 15 backing of Pascual in the material reviewed here. Any formal confirmation of his exit, the payment of the release clause, or the naming of a successor is likely to come after Barcelona’s season ends. (fcbarcelona.com) (dubaibasketball.com)