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Real Madrid is a Spanish sports club best known for its football team which is ranked as 'The 20th Century's Best Club' by FIFA. They play their home games at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium in Madrid.

Real Madrid have been European Champions a record 9 times and have also won a record 29 La Liga titles. The club also operates a reserve football team, Real Madrid Castilla, and a very successful basketball team.

During its history, the club has acquired a number of nicknames. Among the earliest were los merengues, after the white dessert meringue, and los blancos. Both simply referred to the club's legendary all-white strip. In the 1970s, the nickname los vikingos became more popular, especially among the Ultras Sur. This nickname apparently refers to the club's decision to sign a number of players from northern Europe after the restrictions on using foreign players were lifted. More recently, the media dubbed the club los galácticos, referring to club decision to sign star players.

Club Address: Avenida de Concha Espina 1, 28036 - Madrid

History

Early years

Football was introduced to Madrid by the professors and students of the Institución Libre de Enseñanza. They included several Oxbridge graduates. In 1895 they founded the club Football Sky, playing on Sunday mornings at Moncloa. In 1900 this club split into two different clubs New Foot-Ball de Madrid and Español de Madrid. The president of the latter club was Julián Palacios. In 1902 the latter club split again, resulting in the formation of Madrid FC on March 6 1902. The first president was Juan Padrós Rubió; the first secretary was Manuel Mendía; and the first treasurer was José de Gorostizaga. Juan Padrós Rubió would be later succeeded by his brother, Carlos. The Padrós brothers belonged to a Catalan family that had settled in Madrid. The club colours were derived from the English side Corinthians. The club's first manager was an Englishman, Arthur Johnson.

In 1902 Madrid FC members proposed a cup competition to celebrate the coronation of Alfonso XIII . This competition would evolve into the Copa del Rey. In 1904 the club merged with two other Madrid teams, Moderno Amicale and Moncloa. The club won its first Copa del Rey in 1905 and then completed a four in row sequence of wins by 1908. In 1920 the club became Real Madrid FC after receiving the royal patronage of Alfonso XIII. In 1928 they became founding members of La Liga and since then they have never been relegated from the Primera Division. During the Second Spanish Republic the Real was dropped from the clubs name. As Madrid FC, the club won their first La Liga titles in 1932 and 1933.

Rivalries

Rivalry with FC Barcelona
The rivalry between Real Madrid and FC Barcelona is legendary. From the start the clubs were seen as representatives of the two rival regions of Spain, Castile and Catalonia, as well as the two cities themselves. However the rivalry reached a new level during the Generalísimo Francisco Franco years when Real Madrid was considered to be the "regime team" while FC Barcelona was regarded as the team of the opposition.

Although following the Spanish Civil War Real Madrid received considerable institutional assistance from the Franco regime, as he saw the club as the sporting embodiment of the Spain he wanted to create, during the war itself members of both clubs suffered at the hands of Franco supporters. FC Barcelona president Josep Sunyol was killed while Real Madrid president Rafael Sánchez Guerra, a prominent Republican, was imprisoned and tortured. They also arrested and murdered a Real vice-president and club treasurer and an acting president disappeared.

The rivalry was given a significant boost by the 1943 Copa del Generalísimo semi-final between the two clubs. The first leg at Les Corts ended in a 3-0 loss for Real, but the return leg in Madrid saw them win 11-1. It has been alleged by some that the FC Barcelona players were pressured into losing the game. The dispute over Alfredo Di Stéfano in the 1950s intensified the rivalry further.

There is no doubt that Franco benefited from Madrid's achievements in Europe and used the club for propaganda purposes. On the football field, however, both Real Madrid and FC Barcelona have enjoyed success throughout their history, both in Spain and in Europe, regardless of who led the government.

Rivalry with Atlético

Atlético de Madrid is the other big club from the city and as such is also a historic rival of Real Madrid. In very general terms Atlético's fanbase came from the working class and Real Madrid's, from the middle class, adding further tensions, though these distinctions are largely blurred nowadays. Real Madrid's record against Atlético, especially in the last 10 seasons, is very favorable, a high point being the 2002-2003 season, when Atlético had a chance to cause Real Madrid to lose the title in the season's penultimate match, but was crushed 0-4 in the Vicente Calderón stadium.

Other Rivalries

Due to Real Madrid's huge support and success in Spain, as well as the identification many make with a centralist Spanish state, several clubs, either for quasi-political reasons (such as Athletic Bilbao, Osasuna and Real Sociedad) or for pure sporting reasons (Valencia CF) can be counted as sometimes vehement rivals.

Champions of Spain

Real Madrid did not experience consistent or high-level success until their visionary President Santiago Bernabeu was able to sign the Argentine striker Alfredo Di Stefano in 1953 (and not without controversy with rival FC Barcelona). Over several seasons further world-class additions to the squad were made, notably Ferenc Puskás, Francisco Gento, Hector Rial, Raymond Kopa, and José Santamaria (considered the world's best defender). These players formed the nucleus of the Real Madrid team that dominated the second half of the 1950s.

Madrid won La Liga for first time as Real Madrid in 1954 and retained it in 1955. They were winners again in 1957 and 1958, with only Athletic Bilbao interrupting their sequence. CF Barcelona won La Liga in 1959 and 1960 but between 1961 and 1980 Real Madrid dominated La Liga with the club winning the competition 14 times. This included a five in a row sequence (1961-1965) and two three in row sequences (1967-69 and 1978-1980). During this era only Atlético Madrid offered Madrid any serious challenge. It was also during this time that many legendary and beloved players such as Jose Antonio Camacho, Uli Stielke, and especially Juan Gomez came into the side.

In the early 1980s they lost their grip on La Liga. By 1986 however they had resumed normal service with another five in a row sequence (1986-90) with a team that included Hugo Sánchez and the legendary 'Quinta del Buitre' - Emilio Butragueño , Manolo Sanchís, Martín Vazquéz, Míchel and Miguel Pardeza.

Champions of Europe

Real Madrid's reputation as a major club was established by their outstanding record in the European Cup. Alfredo di Stefano, Ferenc Puskás and the others won the European Cup five times in a row between 1956 and 1960 and then for a sixth time in 1966. Winning in five consecutive seasons provides Real Madrid with permanent ownership of the original Cup and the right to wear the UEFA badge of honour. They were also runners-up in 1962, 1964 and 1981. They have won the UEFA Cup twice and were twice runners-up in the European Cup Winners Cup.

In 1998, 2000 and 2002 the club added a further three UEFA Champions League titles, this time inspired by the likes of Raúl, Predrag Mijatović, Davor Šuker, Clarence Seedorf, Roberto Carlos, Fernando Morientes, Steve McManaman, Luís Figo and Zinedine Zidane. Consequently, Real Madrid have been crowned Champions of Europe a record nine times.

Los Galácticos

In July 2000 Florentino Pérez was elected club president with the promise to build a team full of Zidanes and Pavons - expensive high profile recruits and youth team graduates. Initially using money from the sale of the club’s training ground to the Madrid city government, Pérez signed Luís Figo, Zinedine Zidane and Ronaldo and the club gained the new nickname of Los Galácticos. Initially the strategy was successful and Real Madrid won La Liga in 2001 and 2003 and the UEFA Champions League in 2002. They also won the Intercontinental Cup, the European Super Cup and the Supercopa de España in both 2001 and 2003.

Off the field the Los Galácticos policy resulted in increased financial success based on the exploitation of the club’s high marketing potential around the world, especially in Asia and the Far East. However the team’s on field performance declined following Perez’s decision to sack Vicente Del Bosque as club coach in 2003. The poor performance of Real Madrid over the past three seasons is also possibly attributable to the fact that many of the previous clubs 'Galacticos' superstars had played for had built their squads around the player (such as David Beckham at Manchester United, signed by Real Madrid in 2003), or were highly individualistic players, such as Ronaldo. Consequently, when the superstar players were placed together they failed to form a cohesive footballing unit - having a large number of very talented, renowned individual footballers did not effectively translate into a great footballing team.

Recent events

Despite signing further high profile players such as Sergio Ramos, Michael Owen, Robinho, Julio Baptista, and David Beckham, Real Madrid have failed to win a major trophy since 2003. This failure has also seen a high turnover in non-playing staff and the club has had four managers and four directors of football in the four years since the departure of Del Bosque.

On February 27 2006, Florentino Pérez resigned as club president and was replaced by Fernando Martín Álvarez. However on April 26 2006, he stepped down after being unable to secure the required 5 votes from the board. Elections were called for a new president and Martín Álvarez didn't run for presidency. The elections took place on July 2nd, 2006. Ramón Calderón, Villar Mir, Juan Palacios, ex-president Lorenzo Sanz and Arturo Baldasano were the front runners, although it was Ramón Calderón who was announced to have won those elections. There was some controversy as postal votes were not counted due to the time this would take, and the result could yet be overturned.

Calderón promised Fabio Capello as the new coach and Predrag Mijatovic as the new sporting director, both of whom have now been confirmed in their positions. He also promised to sign players such as A.C Milan's Kaka, Chelsea's Arjen Robben, Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo and Arsenal's Francesc Fabregas, and whether or not these specific players are signed confirmed arrivals are expected soon.

Calderon's pre-election promises have already led to friction with other clubs. On July 7, 2006, Chelsea confirmed that it had asked FIFA to investigate Calderon's claims that he has signed Robben to a contract. As Robben is already contracted to Chelsea, such an agreement is illegal.

Major trophies

The club has historically been the most successful in both Spanish and European football.

2000.

1960; 1998; 2002.

1955/56 4-3 vs. Stade de Reims-Champagne
1956/57 2-0 vs. A.C. Fiorentina
1957/58 3-2 vs. AC Milan
1958/59 2-0 vs. Stade de Reims-Champagne
1959/60 7-3 vs. Eintracht Frankfurt
1965/66 2-1 vs. Partizan Belgrade
1997/98 1-0 vs. Juventus
1999/00 3-0 vs. Valencia
2001/02 2-1 vs. Bayer Leverkusen

1984/85; 1985/86.

2002.

1931/32 1932/33 1953/54 1954/55 1956/57 1957/58 1960/61 1961/62 1962/63 1963/64 1964/65 1966/67 1967/68 1968/69 1971/72 1974/75 1975/76 1977/78 1978/79 1979/80 1985/86 1986/87 1987/88 1988/89 1989/90 1994/95 1996/97 2000/01 2002/03

1904/05; 1905/06; 1906/07; 1907/08; 1916/17; 1933/34; 1935/36; 1945/46; 1946/47; 1961/62; 1969/70; 1973/74; 1974/75; 1979/80; 1981/82; 1988/89; 1992/93.

1984/85.

1947 1988 1989 1990 1993 1997 2001 2003

1955 1957

  • Regional Championship: 18
1903/04; 1904/05; 1905/06; 1906/07; 1907/08; 1912/13; 1915/16; 1916/17; 1917/18;
1919/20; 1921/22; 1922/23; 1923/24; 1925/26; 1926/27; 1928/29; 1929/30; 1930/31.

Current squad 2006/07

Real Madrid's most common lineup during the 2005/2006 season

''The numbers are established according to the official websites of Real Madrid, the Spanish league and UEFA. Spanish teams are limited to three players without EU citizenship. The squad list includes only the principal nationality of each player; several players on the squad have dual EU citizenship.

As of February 1 2006

Squad changes during 2006/07 season

In:

Out:

See also: Real Madrid Castilla

Statistics 2005/06

Position Pts P W D L F A
Real Madrid 2 70 38 25 5 8 71 32

  • Top Scorers:
    • Ronaldo - 14 goals
    • Zidane - 9 goals
    • Baptista - 8 goals
  • Top Goalkeepers
    • Casillas - 38 goals in 37 matches
    • Diego Lopez - 2 goals in 2 matches

Stadium information

  • Name - Santiago Bernabéu
  • City - Madrid
  • Capacity - 80,354
  • Inauguration - 1947
  • Pitch size - 106 x 70 mts.
  • Other Facilities: Ciudad Deportiva

Famous former players

see also

Selected Managers

see also

Presidents

see also

Trivia

External links

1902 establishments | G-14 clubs | La Liga | Real Madrid | Spanish football clubs

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This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the "Real Madrid".

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