Catalan La Liga clubs to join region-wide strike

MADRID– 3 October 2017 – La Liga sides Barcelona, Espanyol and Girona have decided to join the general strike in Catalonia on Tuesday, Oct. 3.

The strike, called by more than 40 unions and associations in the region under the umbrella organisation Table for Democracy, is due to police forcefully attempting to stop Catalonia's independence referendum on Sunday, which was deemed illegal by the Spanish government.

More than 840 people needed medical assistance following clashes with riot police in ugly scenes as part of Spain's deepest constitutional crisis for decades.

While many players from Barcelona's first team will leave to join their national squads ahead of the upcoming international fixtures, the remaining players and club staff will not attend the training centre on Tuesday.

"FC Barcelona joins the country wide strike called for by the Table for Democracy and therefore the club will be closed tomorrow," Barcelona tweeted on Monday.

"None of the professional teams or the youth teams at FC Barcelona will train tomorrow at the Ciutat Esportiva."

There was an organised region-wide 'standstill' protest on Monday with workers across Catalonia stopping work for 15 minutes at midday, including employees at Barcelona club offices.

Espanyol and Girona, also based in Catalonia, released statements on Monday declaring their intentions to join the general strike as well.

In protest at the violent events on Sunday, Barcelona held their La Liga clash with Las Palmas behind closed doors, winning 3-0.