FC Barcelona vs Las Palmas postponed due to Catalonia independence referendum protests

The Nou Camp club were keen for the game to be called off but La Liga tried their best to make them fulfil the fixture

Sunday 01 October 2017 11:04 BST
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Today's game is in serious doubt due to the protests
Today's game is in serious doubt due to the protests

Update 1500 BST: Barcelona agree to play fixture behind closed doors - full story here

Barcelona's La Liga fixture with Las Palmas on Sunday afternoon has been postponed.

Club officials decided they couldn't guarantee the safety of playing a match as Spanish police fire rubber bullets at protesters on the streets of Catalonia.

The Nou Camp was due to play host to the game but as the region heads to vote in a referendum deemed illegal by the central government in Madrid, troublesome scenes have broken out on the streets of the Catalan capital.

Barca officials met at 12.30 CET (11.30 BST) to decide on whether the game can be played against the Canary Islanders, and wanted it postponed only for La Liga to try and force them to play the game. La Liga is headed up by staunch right-wing nationalist Javier Tebas.

Las Palmas, for their part, had fanned the flames by adding a Spanish flag to their shirt for this fixture.

In a club statement they said: "Las Palmas could limited itself to being a mute witness to this historic crossroads or take action. We've opted for the latter.

"We've decided to add to our shirt a small Spanish flag and the today's date, to make clear our hopes for the future of this country."

Las Palmas add a Spanish flag to shirt to play Barcelona

Those shirts can now be packed away with the game set to be rescheduled.

For all the latest from Catalonia, follow our live blog.

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