Sandro Rosell
| Sandro Rosell | |
|---|---|
 |
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| 39th President of FC Barcelona | |
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In office 1 July 2010 – 23 January 2014 |
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| Preceded by | Joan Laporta |
| Succeeded by | Josep Maria Bartomeu |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Alexandre Rosell Feliu 6 March 1964 Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain |
| Nationality | Spanish |
| Alma mater | ESADE |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
| Website | www |
Alexandre "Sandro" Rosell Feliu (Catalan pronunciation: [ˈsandɾu ruˈzeʎ]; born 6 March 1964) is a Spanish businessman. He was the president of FC Barcelona from 2010 to 2014. With an MBA degree from ESADE, Rosell is known for being the running mate and senior adviser of Joan Laporta during the presidential elections at FC Barcelona in 2003. Moreover, he is renowned for bringing Ronaldinho to the Camp Nou in the same year.
Rosell and Joan Laporta joined forces in 2003 to support the latter's bid to become president of FC Barcelona. After winning by a large majority, Rosell attempted to make the election pledge of bringing David Beckham to the club a reality. At the time, Rosell claimed he was "80% confident" that the move would take place. Beckham, however, chose to join Barcelona's fierce rivals, Real Madrid. As a result, the Barcelona board opted to try and sign Brazilian star Ronaldinho from Paris Saint-Germain. The Catalan club were in direct competition for the Brazilian with Manchester United, who wanted him as a replacement for the England international. At a time of financial uncertainty, the capture of Ronaldinho was crucial for Barcelona. It is widely believed that Ronaldinho signed for Barcelona instead of the Premier League Champions because of his friendship with Rosell, a former Nike executive in Brazil.
Rosell resigned as vice-president of sports in June 2005, despite Barcelona winning the title that year, accusing Laporta of failing to carry its original plan for the club.
In 2006, Rosell released a book Benvingut al món real (Welcome to the real world), just as Barcelona were on the verge of reaching the UEFA Champions League final, which they eventually won. It was seen as a direct attack on club president Laporta after it promised to reveal the problems that had caused Rosell to resign.
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