Barcelona FC
Lists of honours and history.
History,
Trophies,
Record List
History
Hans Gamper and other soccer enthusiasts founded Barcelona Football Club on 29 November 1899.
Throughout some of Catalunya's most difficult, and opressive years, the flag of FC Barcelona represented the people's hopes for freedom.
At first Hans Gamper was the best player, he shot 103 goals at Barca between 1901 and 1903. Hans Gamper changed his name into Juan Gamper because this was more spanish style. Juan was voted five times to be the president of the club.
In 1905 there was the first duel between Real Madrid and FC Barcelona, where the cathalunian team was able to win 5-2. Barca won many championsships in the following years. But there was no championship as we know today, the clubs just played regional championships, then the regional champs would play against eachother. Barca won in 1910 together with Athletic Bilbao, 1912, 1913 together with Irun, 1920, 1922, 1926 (the year when proffesional football started) and 1928.
At this point Spannish club football was not as strong in Europe, as it now. Mid table Scottish side Dundee from the Scottish league toured Spain and beat Barcelona and Real convingly. (Although Dundee United were also to record 4 out of 4 wins against Barcelona in the later sixties and in the eighties. These later matches were shock scores. By the fifites the Spannish league was one of the strongest in Europe.)
In 1929 the spanish teams changed their system, a real spanish league was created. The first champion of this league was FC Barcelona.
In the midst of the glorious 20s, Barca one of their first politcal issues with the government. On 14th June 1925, during Primo de Rivera's dictatorship, the crowd at a match in homage to the Orfeo Catalan jeered the Spanish anthem. The government closed the ground for three months, and forced Gamper to resign the presidency. Five years later, on 30th July 1930, the club's founder died. The club now entered a period of decline in a period when political conflict overshadowed sport. Although the Barca won Catalan Championships, success at Spanish level was not to arrive.
A month after civil war began, Barca president Josep Suñol was murdered by Franco's soldiers . The squad was on a tour of Mexico and USA, which also resulted in half the team seeking exile in Mexico and France. On 16th March 1938 the fascists dropped a bomb on the club's social club. A few months later, Barcelona was under fascist occupation and as a symbol of Catalan nationalism, the club, now down to just 3,486 members, was facing a number of serious problems. In March 1940 a collaborator with the Franco regime, was appointed President. The name of the club was changed from its anglicized original Futbol Club Barcelona, to Club de Fútbol Barcelona,a change reversed in 1973.
During the 40s, the club gradually recovered from a crisis which had seen them nearly relegated in 1942, although they did win the Spanish Cup in the same season. During the next season, the vicous game against Madrid, saw Barca players threatened by referee and police. Even the fascist president of the Barca, resigned in protest at the treatment of Barca. With the conquest of the Spanish Leagues of 1944-45, 1947-48 and 1948-49, as well as the Copa Llatina in 1949, the club finally seemed to have turned the corner and put the problems of the previous few years behind them. With figures as important as César, Basora, Velasco, Curta, the Gonzalvo brothers, Seguer, Biosca and Ramallets on the books, Barca celebrated their 50th anniversary in 1949 boosted by member numbers of 24,893 and boasting 21 Catalan Championships, 9 cups and 4 Spanish League titles.
In the fifties Real were given massive support by the dictatorship and went on to win 5 european cups in a row. The great Argentianina player Di Stefano was also forced by the government to leave Barcelona and join Real. The Di Stefano affair, led to the dismissal of the Barca President. His successor, Francesc Miró-Sans put all his energies into the building of the famous Nou Camp Stadium, which was opened in September 1957. The new stadium had a 90,000 capacity and was the perfect setting for a team who'd just won their latest Spanish Cup and now had 40,000 members. With boss Herrera in charge, the team, won the Spanish League in 58-59 and 59-60 as well as the Fairs Cup in 1957-58 (against a representative side from London) and 1959-60. The club also became the first side to defeat Real in the European cup, but could not win the European cup itself. Unfortunately the sixties did not continue the success and the team won only three trophies during the decade, the Spanish Cup in 1963 and 1968 and the Fairs Cup in 1966. Despite this, the club became more and more identified with Catalan identity.
The club only won one Spanish league each in the sixties and seventies. Real enjoyed 8 championships in the sixties their most successful domestic spell, plus 5 in the seventies. the derby rival for Real, Atheltico seemed a more consistent challenge to Real.
Barca won the Spanish Cup in 1971 and began work in October on Palau Blaugrana and the ice skating rink. Two years later, in 1973, the signing of Dutch Maestro Johan Cruyff put the finishing touches to a wonderful forward line of Rexach, Asensi, Cruyff, Sotil and Marcial, who led the league winning side of 1973-74. Coinciding with the club's 75th anniversary, there were now 69,566 members, making it the most powerful sporting club in the World.
With the team winning the Spanish Cup in 1978, Josep Lluis Nuñez became President, with a clear message of renovation and rebuilding. The club began a period of expansion and financial stability linked to an increase in members, ground improvements and success. With 30,000 Catalans present at the final, Barca won the Cup Winners Cup in 1979. Maradona, voted the greatest player with Pele, arrived at the club in the early eighties, but was soon sold to Italy. But not before helping Barca to the Spanish League in 1985 for the first time since 1974 under the management of the first English manager Terry Venables, .
The team nearly won their first European cup in 1986 but lost on a shoot out to Romainian side Steaua Bucharest. The European cup now seemed a curse for Barcelona. Real had won 6 times while Barca had won none.
Cruyff was appointed boss in 1989 and lead Barcelona to their most successful era in decades. With four consecutive Spanish Leagues between 1990 and 1994 and finally the European Cup on 20th May 1992 at Wembley, London. Barcelona had atleast managed something Real could not achieve, and now cannot achieve. They had won every major European trophy the UEFA cup, the cup winner cup and the European cup and then the super cup too in 1992 for the first time. Cruyff's side fell away to mid table in the mid nineties. Cruyff was sacked, once again a great manager sacked simply for failing to meet his own standard which he himself had set. Then came the second English manager Bobby Robson, who won the Cup Winners Cup, the Spanish Cup and the Spanish Super Cup in the 1996-97 season . Followed by the great Dutch manager Louis van Gaal's consecutive league titles in 1997-98 and 1998-99, when the team won the double for the first time in 39 years.
From 2000 Real awoke again to their best period since th dictatorship. With 3 european cups, and domination in Spain for Real. Barca started to struggle, to even stay the second biggest side in Spain. Enough was enough in 2003 when the Barça lost another game, the fans waved white hankies.
The club was now in crisis, there was no leadership at the board room level and the team were abysmal and also without a manager. Barça went on to finnish 6th in La Liga.
Joan Laporta was elected as the new president of FC Barcelona. The lawyer and his team were all still young enough to play football. Laporta's great running of the club saw debts being cut and big names, such as Ronaldinho, and Deco, joining the club and, he has bought back the success to FC Barcelona. The club struggled to get dominance in 2004, losing the league and then knocked out of the UEFA cup by Celtic in the quarter final, but a runner up spot in the league and a finish above Real showed hope.
The next year Deco arrived and Real fell away as their team of once great players grew old, kept past their time to sell team strips. Under young dutch manager Rijkard, Barcelona have become the best side in Europe, even defeating Chelsea in the 2006 European cup, and dominating the league with wins in 2005 and a cert for 2006.
Trophies @ Barcelona
World Club championship
o times
Runner -up
1992
European Super cup
1992, 1997, 2006
Runner - up
1979 , 1982, 1989
European cup
1992
Runner - up
1961, 1986, 1994
UEFA Cup
1958, 1960, 1966
Runner -up
0 times
European cup winner cup
1979, 1982, 1989, 1997
Runner - up
1969, 1991
Spanish
Champions: 18
1928-29, 1944-45, 1947-48, 1948-49, 1951-52, 1952-53, 1958-59,
1959-60, 1973-74, 1984-85, 1990-91, 1991-92, 1992-93, 1993-94, 1997-98, 1998-99,
2004-05 , 2005 -6
La
Liga del Mediterráneo:1
1937
Copa
Macaya/Catalan Champions: 22
1901-02, 1904-05, 1908-09, 1909-10, 1910-11,
1912-13, 1915-16, 1918-19, 1919-20, 1920-21, 1921-22, 1923-24, 1924-25, 1925-26,
1926-27, 1927-28, 1929-30, 1930-31, 1931-32, 1933-34, 1935-36, 1937-38
Copa del Rey: 24
1909-10,
1911-12, 1912-13, 1919-20, 1921-22, 1924-25, 1925-26, 1927-28, 1941-42, 1950-51,
1951-52, 1952-53, 1956-57, 1958-59, 1962-63, 1967-68, 1970-71, 1977-78, 1980-81,
1982-83, 1987-88, 1989-90, 1996-97, 1997-98
Supercopa
de España: 9
1948, 1952, 1953, 1984, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1997, 2005
Copa Catalunya : 5
1990-91,
1992-93, 1999-2000, 2003-04, 2004-05
Copa
de la Liga: 2
1983, 1986
Copa
Latina: 2
1949, 1952
Record list:
Poorest record againt any club 4 out of 4 defeats to Dundee United in Uefa cup trophies in the sixties and eighties.