Overview of FC Barcelona history

OUR CLUB - BARÇA HISTORY

WE ARE THE BLUE AND CLARET PEOPLE

The Swiss citizen Joan Gamper, while working in Barcelona as an accountant at the Sarriá Railway Company, used to organize matches with some fellow countrymen. On the 22nd October 1899, the newspaper "Sport" published an article in which he was looking for football supporters. The young people who contacted him were: Walter Wild, Lluís d'Ossó, Bartalomé Terrades, Otto Kunzle, Otto Maier, Enrique Ducal, Pedro Cabot, Carlos Pujol, José Llobet, Juan Parsons and Guillermo Parsons. Football Club Barcelona was about to become a reality on the 29th November 1899.

There are different versions that try to explain the election of the team colours. Blue and claret were the colours of the Zurich's Excelsor, the first Gamper Club, as well as the colours of the Switzerland's Ticino side where he was born. Another version says that one of his assistants used to carry a half-blue half-red pencil, very common among the workers at that time, and it was used as a reference. Some people say that the idea came from the Comamalas' mother, who had made some blue and claret sort of girdles for their sons to play and they ended up by mixing the two colours.

STADIUMS, PLAYERS, COACHS AND PRESIDENTS

The first FC Barcelona stadium was built in Les Corts and known as "Football Cathedral". It was inaugurated on the 20th of May 1922. The current stadium, popularly known as "Camp Nou" was inagurated on a very special date, the Mercè festivity, patron saint of Barcelona, on the 24th of September 1957.

Throughout the years, the Barsa team has collected many victories and trophies and has enjoyed the presence of important players such as Kubala, Johan Cruyff (as a player and later as the coach) Maradona, Schuster, Stoichkov, Goikotxea, Koeman, Laudrup, Figo, Rivaldo, Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, Samuel Eto’o and many other top quality players. In terms of coachs, Terry Venables will be remembered for his Dream Team (1990-1994). Other coachs who have obtained titles are Joan Cruyff, Bobby Robson or Luis Van Gaal.

Under Josep Lluís Núñez's presidency, FC Barcelona enjoyed one of their best periods: they conquered the Basil Cup Winner's Cup with Venables as coach. Four consecutive Spanish League Title, Spanish Cup and Super Cup and the Wembley European Champions' Cup with under Cruyff's lead. With Van Gaal as the Barsa coach, two consecutive cups and both the Spanish League and Cup 1998 were won.

After 22 years Núñez left the Club and Joan Gaspar was appointed President. But due to the Barsa's bad results the coach then, Serra Ferrer, was replaced by Carles Reixach. Joan Laporta as the President and Rijkaard as the coach have managed to make the supporters feel hopeful again after 5 years without any important victories.

Barça won the Spanish Leagues 1958-59 and 1959-60, and the Fairs' Cups 1957-1958 and 1959-60, coached by Helenio Herrera with such excellent players as Kocsis, Czibor, Evaristo, Kubala, Eulogio Martínez, Suárez, Villaverde, Olivella, Gensana, Segarra, Gràcia, Vergés and Tejada.
The 60's were a period of crisis (Barsa won the Spanish Cups 1963 and 1968 and the Fairs' Cup 1966, only). However, it was then that the sentence "more than a Club" was born. Barsa was something more than a sports club: the Club and its colours became a way to defend the Catalan national identity.
CRUYFF

In 1973, the signing of Dutch Johan Cruyff set up a golden forward line with Rexach, Asensi, Cruyff, Sotil and Marcial, who brilliantly won the 1973-74 national League. This was the Club's 75th anniversary and there were 69,566 members. It became the most powerful sports club in the World. Joan Miró performed the commemorative poster of that celebration.

F.C. BARCELONA TROPHY RECORD

18 SPANISH LEAGUE TITLES
24 SPANISH CUP TITLES
7 SPANISH SUPERCUP TITLES
2 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONS' CUPS
4 CUP-WINNERS' CUPS
3 UEFA CUP TITLES (FAIRS' CUP)
2 EUROPEAN SUPER CUP TITLES
2 LEAGUE CUP TITLES
2 LATIN CUP TITLES
22 CATALONIA CHAMPIONSHIPS
5 CATALONIA CUPS