To understand the importance of Barcelona FC's status it is important to understand its history:
It grew from strength to strength, winning titles such as the Macaya Cup in 1902, the Pyranees Cup in 1910 - 1912.In 1899 Joan Gamper, a Swiss man, decided to introduce football to Barcelona by setting up a team. The club was officially founded on 29th November 1899.
Barcelona FC built their first stadium in 1909 with a capacity of 6,000 people.
During the 1920's the team's fame and success grew. They won the first Championship League in the 1928 - 1929 season. With the club's new popularity it was necessary to build a new stadium. In 1922 the 'Les Corts' stadium was built, with a capacity of 22,000 people.
It is important to remember that Barcelona FC has survived a Civil War. In 1936 Franco's troops shot the club president, Josep Sunyol due to his membership of a left wing party.
All Barcelona FC fans are proud of what is called the 'Five Cups' Season. This was the period between 1951 - 1952 when Barcelona FC won the Cup, the League, the Latin Cup, the Martini Rosso and the Eva Duarte.
In 1957 Camp Nou was built, with an initial capacity of 90,000 people.
In 1988 - 1989 the arrival of the legendary Johan Cruyff as the team coach saw many changes made on the team. Barca were very strong at this point and winning many competitions. Barca fans began chanting "now we've got a new team".Barcelona's success grew from strength to strength. By 1983 the team was able to afford players such as Bernd Schuster and Diego Maradona.
In 1996 - 97 two new arrivals to the team had a great affect - Bobby Robson on the bench and Ronaldo on the pitch. This was a successful year for the team.
In 2003 a new wave of players joined the team. These included Rijkaard and Ronaldinho, Puyol and Xavi.
In 2004 - 2005 players such as Deco and Eto'o joined the team.
In the 2004 - 2005 season FC Barcelona won the league. This happened again in 2005 - 2006 when the club won the League again and the European Cup in Paris
