Boca Juniors stand to receive a windfall when the deal is finalised this summer, courtesy of FIFA's Solidarity Mechanism, which distributes 5% of the value of any international transfer among a player's former youth clubs.
Barco joined Boca at 12 and spent his formative years there before moving to Brighton and Hove Albion. That entitles the Argentine giants to 3% of the transfer fee — potentially anywhere between $900,000 and $1.2 million depending on the final figure agreed, with reports placing the deal in the $30-40 million range.
Argentine outlet El Intransigente reports that Boca's board are already planning how to use the funds.
Infrastructure upgrades, investment in their youth divisions and possible spending in the transfer market are all under discussion. The club are described as "already celebrating" — even though the paperwork has not been signed.
The underlying deal, however, looks as close to done as it can be without the pen touching the contract. Fabrizio Romano confirmed this week that Barco has agreed personal terms on a six-year deal with Chelsea, with the move set for completion in June. Manager Liam Rosenior worked with Barco during his time in charge at Strasbourg, where the 21-year-old transformed from a struggling left-back into a composed central midfielder with 11 goal contributions in 38 appearances this season.
It has been quite a journey. Barco joined Brighton for around £7.87 million in 2024 and failed to establish himself in the Premier League before Strasbourg took him on loan. The BlueCo relationship then did the rest.
Strasbourg manager Gary O'Neil is reportedly less than thrilled about losing another key player to Chelsea. Some fans have gone further — planning protests at Stamford Bridge.
Boca, though, are not complaining.