Barcelona’s highly anticipated friendly against Juventus in California, which was scheduled to take place on Saturday at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, has been called off due to an unfortunate illness affecting several of the players.

“FC Barcelona hereby informs that the game against Juventus FC, scheduled for today, July 22 at 7:30 p.m at Levi’s Stadium, as part of the Soccer Champions Tour, has been canceled. A significant part of the blaugrana squad has a viral gastroenteritis,” the club said in an official statement on Saturday.

Reports indicate that as many as 14 players in the Barca camp are currently suffering from the illness, rendering them unable to participate in the match against the Italian club. Follow your favourite La Liga team with attractive football betting odds from Nextbet.

Barcelona assured all fans who purchased tickets for the event that they would receive full refunds, and the club is protected by an insurance payment that shields them from any potential financial penalties resulting from the fixture’s cancellation.

Despite this setback, Barcelona remains confident about their next scheduled match against Arsenal on Wednesday and believes the team will be fit to play.

“FC Barcelona would like to encourage its fans to attend and enjoy the game we are going to play this Wednesday against Arsenal at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles,” the club stated. “Both teams are in close contact and we both have the utmost confidence that our game will go on as planned.”

In other transfer news, Barcelona recently completed the signing of midfielder Oriol Romeu from Girona, with midfielder Pablo Torre, 20, moving in the opposite direction on a season-long loan. Get the latest updates from the La Liga only on Nextbet Sports.