Basel vs. Barcelona: Preview, Predictions and Lineups

Just a week away from their first competitive fixture of the 2026–27 campaign, Barcelona take on Swiss side Basel in their penultimate preseason friendly.

La Blaugrana kicked off the summer by thrashing Catalan minnows CE Europa behind closed doors, before journeying to England for a 2–2 draw with Tom Brady’s Birmingham City. Last weekend saw them take on Nottingham Forest and Udinese in quick succession, beating the former 1–0 before losing to the latter by the same scoreline.

The new La Liga campaign has already kicked off, but Barcelona have been given extra preparation time after so many of their first-team stars were involved in the latter stages of the World Cup. That means they can squeeze in two more warmup games, starting against Basel before the Joan Gamper Trophy match with Egyptian side Al Ahly on Wednesday.

Hansi Flick has welcomed back the last returnees from their holidays, including his large cohort of Spanish World Cup winners. They could feature in some capacity, as will several young guns alongside a host of more experienced heads.

Basel vs. Barcelona Score Prediction

Barça Taste Routine Victory

Barça are still yet to reach full match sharpness with their first competitive game fast approaching, but the trip to Switzerland offers them another chance to get minutes in the legs of the first-team stars who traveled to the World Cup earlier this summer.

Raphinha, who scored the winning goal against Forest last weekend, will be joined by some other big names, and they will expect to clinch victory against a Basel side which has already played four competitive fixtures this term.

The hosts were in action in the Swiss Cup on Saturday, beating minnows FC Courtételle 6–1, but they still named a raft of starters for a routine win. That means their coach, ex-Arsenal defender Stephan Lichtsteiner, has some decisions to make over which players will feature against Barça.

Regardless, the reigning La Liga champions should come out on top, even if their performance is unlikely to be perfect.

Prediction: Basel 0–2 Barcelona

Barcelona Predicted Lineup vs. Basel

Barcelona predicted XI — Barça have welcomed back some key players recently, but some aren’t yet ready for starts. | FotMob

Flick knows he’s without the injured duo of Frenkie de Jong and Roony Bardghji, the latter recently rupturing his ACL in training. That has scuppered a possible summer exit and will leave him sidelined for much of the 2026–27 season.

Despite now having all players available in training, Flick will be hesitant to chuck the recent returnees into the starting XI against Basel. However, the likes of Lamine Yamal, Jules Koundé and summer signing Anthony Gordon are all part of the traveling squad, with the latter potentially making his unofficial debut.

Pedri hasn’t journeyed to Switzerland, though, while Marc Casadó has also been left behind amid exit rumors.

A similar lineup to the one that beat Forest could be fielded, which will include appearances for Raphinha, Fermín López, Andreas Christensen and new recruit Karim Adeyemi.

Barcelona predicted lineup vs. Basel (4-2-3-1): Szczęsny; Espart, Christensen, Martín, Balde; Bernal, Fariñas; Adeyemi, López, Raphinha; Abdelkarim.

What Time Does Basel vs. Barcelona Kick Off?

Location: Basel, Switzerland
Stadium: St. Jakob-Park
Date: Sunday, Aug. 16
Kick-off Time: 10:30 a.m. ET / 7:30 a.m. PT / 3:30 p.m. BST

How to Watch Basel vs. Barcelona on TV, Live Stream

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MORE: Full list of Basel vs. Barcelona broadcasters around the world

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