Rivalries

There is a fierce rivalry between the two strongest teams in a national league, and this is particularly the case in La Liga, where the game between Barca and Real Madrid is known as El Clasico. From the start of national competitions the clubs were seen as representatives of two rival regions in Spain: Catalonia and Castile, as well as of the two cities.

During the dictatorships of Primo de Rivera and especially of Francisco Franco (1939-1975), all regional cultures were suppressed. All of the languages spoken in Spanish territory, except Spanish (Castilian) itself, were officially banned. Symbolising the Catalan people's desire for freedom, Barca became 'More than a club' for the Catalans.

On the other hand, Real Madrid was widely seen as the embodiment of the sovereign oppressive centralism and the fascist regime at management level and beyond (Santiago Bernabeu, the former club president for whom the Merengues stadium is named, fought with los nacionales). However, during the Spanish Civil War, members of both clubs such as Josep Sunyol and Rafael Sanchez Guerra suffered at the hands of Franco supporters.

Player profiles