Barcelona's long wait to return to Spotify Camp Nou continues after the club announced Tuesday that their next LaLiga game, against Girona on Oct. 18, will be played at the Olympic Stadium.
Barça had already confirmed the Champions League match against Olympiacos, three days later on Oct. 21, will also take place at the Olympic Stadium due to delays in acquiring the necessary permits to return to Camp Nou.
There has not yet been any confirmation where November's home league fixtures, against Elche, Athletic Club and Alavés, will be played.
"The club continues to work on obtaining the necessary administrative permits for the opening of Spotify Camp Nou and remains in constant contact with Barcelona city council in order to carry out the required inspections over the coming days," a statement said.
"In this context, although the club expects to receive the first occupancy license for phase 1A [main stand and behind the goal] soon -- which would allow for a capacity of up to 27,000 spectators -- Barça will aim to return to Spotify Camp Nou once the corresponding license for phase 1B [main stand, behind the goal, and lateral stand] has also been obtained, increasing the stadium's capacity to 45,000 spectators."
Camp Nou has been closed for a €1.5 billion ($1.75bn) renovation since 2023, with initial plans to return with a reduced capacity at the end of 2024 scrapped.
The Catalan club had hoped to be back for the start of this season, but while the playing surface and the insides of the stadium are largely ready, the wait to secure the necessary licenses to host games there, especially from a health and safety perspective, goes on.
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As a result, Barça had to play their first two home matches this season at the 6,000-capacity Estadi Johan Cruyff because the 50,000-capacity Olympic Stadium, their home for the past two seasons, was being used for another event.
Barça returned to the Olympic Stadium for the 2-1 win over Real Sociedad on Sept. 28 and the Champions League defeat to Paris Saint-Germain three days later.
They will remain there until there is an update on moving back to Camp Nou.
Sources told ESPN last month the Girona game had initially been targeted as a possible homecoming, albeit with that reduced capacity of 27,000.
However, reports in the local media this week say that plan was parked because a November return, with 45,000 fans, is financially more appealing to the club.