Barcelona have announced plans to change the club’s crest in order to “adapt to modern times”.

The badge has gone through numerous alterations since the Catalan giants were founded in 1899 but the current design has been the same for the last 16 years.

The reigning Spanish champions have now decided it is time to modernise it though, with the new design seeing the removal of the ‘FCB’ acronym from the middle of the badge among several other slight changes.

The club said in a statement: “FC Barcelona is changing its crest in order to adapt to modern times. Since the design was last updated in 2002, the context, society and technology have changed enormously, and the symbols identified with the club need to evolve too.

“(The) new design emphasises club’s roots and historical elements, ‘blaugrana’ colours are more prominent, and the ball, icon of the Barca style of play, is moved to a more central position.

“(The) basic form remains the same, but FCB acronym and inner black outlines removed to produce a more homogeneous, harmonious and brighter crest design.”

The new design has already been approved by the Barca board but now needs the approval of club members, with a decision set to be made on October 20.

If it is ratified, the new crest will effectively be introduced for the 2019-20 season.