Barcelona club store couldnât sell Lewandowski jerseys because it had run out of the letter âWâ
Barcelonaâs signing of Robert Lewandowski has caused such excitement that a club store had to stop selling jerseys bearing his name â because it has run out of the letter âW.â
According to a video posted to social media on Tuesday, a fan at one of the clubâs official outlets asked an employee why he was unable to purchase a Lewandowski shirt.
âWe donât have any more of the letter W, and Lewandowski has two. Itâs sold out,â the staff member replied.
A Barcelona spokesperson confirmed to ESPN that the issue had arisen, and said the club expected it to be resolved in all stores by Thursday.
The letter W is extremely rare in Spanish and in Catalan, with the Royal Spanish Academy (RAE) saying the letterâs use is restricted to âwords of Germanic origin such as Wagnerian⊠or Anglicisms, as in Washingtonian or whiskey.â
Barcelona have defied their tight finances to pull off a string of deals this summer, with teenager Pablo Torre, AC Milan midfielder Franck Kessie, Chelsea defender Andreas Christensen and Leeds winger Raphinha all arriving.
None of those signings, however, has generated as much enthusiasm as Lewandowskiâs, which is understandable given that the 33-year-old is one of footballâs greatest-ever goal scorers.
The Poland international was runner-up to Lionel Messi for the 2021 Ballon dâOr, won the FIFA Best Menâs Player award in 2020 and 2021, and took the Golden Boot for Europeâs most prolific finisher in the past two seasons.
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His arrival was made official on Tuesday after a deal in principle was announced at the weekend â with Barca paying Bayern Munich a transfer fee of âŹ45 million, plus a potential âŹ5m in variables, and the player signing a four-year contract with a âŹ500m release clause.
Lewandowski flew to Miami, where Barcelona have been based for the start of their preseason U.S. tour, to meet his new teammates and pass a medical as the final details of his contract were agreed.
He did not feature in Barcaâs 6-0 win over Inter Miami on Tuesday but could make his debut for the club in their Clasico clash against Real Madrid in Las Vegas this weekend.