Contemporary FC Barcelona

• FC Barcelona was considered a team of losers, same as Netherlands and same as Spain

• The most glorious times in soccer history for each of those teams came following a very similar style of play, considered until that moment beautiful but ineffective

Contemporary FC Barcelona

The dawn of an era: 1988-1996

• Almost 40 years after the birth of the European Cup in 1955 FC Barcelona remained unsuccessful

• In 1992 they reached their third final in Wembley Stadium, London

May 1992 London

Team Winners

Real Madrid 10

AC Milan 7

Liverpool 5

Bayern Munich 5

FC Barcelona 5

Ajax 4

Inter Milan 3

Manchester Utd 3

Team Winners

Real Madrid 6

AC Milan 4

Liverpool 4

Bayern Munich 3

Ajax 3

Inter Milan 2

…

FC Barcelona 0

20151992

Contemporary FC Barcelona

The dawn of an era: 1988-1996

FC Barcelona until 1992

List of Winners of the UEFA Champions League (previously known as European Cup):

Contemporary FC Barcelona

The dawn of an era: 1988-1996

• Johan Cruyff, former FC Barcelona player, took the job as coach and impregnated the team with the a unique playing identity

• In 2003 Joan Laporta, newly elected president, signed Frank Rijkaard, another Dutchman in Barça’s history.

• Laporta tried to sign Beckham but he finally got to Real Madrid. Instead, Ronaldinho came to Barcelona.

• In 2006 FC Barcelona became European champions for 2nd time in its history.

Contemporary FC Barcelona

The Cruyff model

revisited: 2003-2008

• In only 4 years in his position as manager (2008-2012) Pep Guardiola directed Barça in 19 competitions and won 14 of them:

- 2 UEFA Champions Leagues- 3 Spanish ligas- 2 Spanish kings’ cups- 3 Spanish supercups- 2 European supercups- 2 FIFA club world cups

Contemporary FC Barcelona

The Belle Époque:

Guardiola

• FC Barcelona played a very recognizable game. Guardiola built what was considered by many the greatest, or one of the greatest, soccer teams in the history of the game. He revisited the fundaments of the ‘DNA barcelona’ such as:

- the central role of the youth academy (lost in the last decade)- the passing game prioritizing small but extremely skilled

footballers (Iniesta, Xavi, Messi…)- sometimes, the game system played under Johan Cruyff (3-4-

3).

Contemporary FC Barcelona

The Belle Époque:

Guardiola

• With all that, Guardiola created the perfect environment for Messi to become one of the greatest of al time.

• The clásico, Real Madrid – FC Barcelona rivalry, became a global phenomenon by the time Mourinho joined Real Madrid. Many of the players in the national squad plaid for FCB or RMD and the tension between the clubs had a negative impact in la selección.

• the eye incident, and the other eye incident

Contemporary FC Barcelona

The Belle Époque:

Guardiola

• In April 2012 Guardiola announced he was leaving FC Barcelona because he felt ‘exhausted’ and ‘empty of energy’.

• Tito Vilanova became the new manager but two years later he died after spending most of his tenure sick.

• Barça has suffered through the last years a progressive decline in its play as well as institutional turmoil.

Contemporary FC Barcelona

Post Guardiola years

FC Barcelona of Whiners: Busquets 1 & Busquets 2

FC Barcelona of Whiners: Alves

José Mourinho, Real Madrid coach

José Mourinho, Real Madrid coach

Lionel Messi set to face trial over alleged tax fraud – The Guardian, 2014

Ex President Josep Lluis Núñez in jail for tax fraud – The Guardian, 2014

FCB transfer ban by FIFA over violation of youth transfer regulation – ESPN, 2014

Obscure payments in Neymar’s transfer– BBC, 2014

From Unicef to Qatar