Barcelona have announced that their friendly match against Juventus, scheduled for Saturday at Levi’s Stadium in California, has been called off due to a viral gastroenteritis outbreak among the players.
The Catalan club said in a statement that “a significant part of the blaugrana squad” was affected by the stomach bug, which forced them to cancel the game as part of the Soccer Champions Tour.
The match was supposed to be the first of two games for Barcelona in the United States, as they are also set to face Real Madrid in Texas on July 29. Juventus, meanwhile, will play AC Milan in Carson on July 27 and Real Madrid in Orlando on August 2.
Barcelona have previously played at Levi’s Stadium twice, losing to Manchester United in 2015 and beating AC Milan in 2018. Juventus have not played in the Bay Area since 2003, when they faced Barcelona at Oakland Coliseum.
The cancellation is a disappointment for the fans who were looking forward to seeing some of the world’s best players, including Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Paulo Dybala, in action.
