Inside FC Barcelona’s Open-Source Plan to Spur Soccer Innovation

FC Barcelona's Camp Nou stadium ahead of a La Liga match against Villarreal CF. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)

A few hundreds yards from the practice field of FC Barcelona’s first team sits a nondescript, medium-sized office. Inside, executives are trying to craft the future of soccer, building on an innovation strategy they hope will impact not just Barça, but the entire sport.

The Barça Innovation Hub, founded two years ago, is an ambitious branch of the giant FC Barcelona. While the parent club is best known for its namesake La Liga soccer team, it also encompasses youth soccer teams and four other professional sports: roller hockey, futsal, handball, and EuroLeague basketball. Barça…