Barcelona Sporting Club
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| Full name | Barcelona Sporting Club | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Nickname(s) | Ídolo del Astillero (Shipyard Idol) Toreros (Bullfighters) Equipo Canario (Canary Team) |
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| Founded | May 1, 1925 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ground | Estadio Monumental Banco Pichincha Guayaquil, Ecuador (Capacity: 89,932) |
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| Chairman |  Eduardo Maruri |
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| Manager |  Benito Floro |
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| League | Serie A | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2008 | 5th | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Barcelona Sporting Club is an Ecuadorian football team based in Guayaquil. They are currently tied with Club Deportivo El Nacional as the most successful team in the country in terms of national championships, currently at 13 titles. They have the most Copa Libertadores participations out of any club in Ecuador, and were the first Ecuadorian team to make it to the Copa Libertadores finals, having done so twice in 1990 & 1998. Their main rival is crosstown team Club Sport Emelec, with whom they play the most popular local derby in Ecuador, the Clásico del Astillero.
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[edit] History
[edit] Foundation
| Barcelona Sporting Club's 1st squad of 15 June 1925. The coach was Eutimio Pérez. |
Barcelona Sporting Club was founded on May 1, 1925 by a Eutimio Pérez, a Catalan immigrant from Barcelona, Spain. (Contrary to popular belief, the team was named the city, not after FC Barcelona; the Barça-like crest was adopted later). The team competed in the provincial tournament organized by Asociación de Fútbol del Guayas (AFG), who at the time organized only amateur football tournament for the Guayas Province.
During the 1940s, the popularity of Barcelona grew, thanks in part certain games against Colombian teams Deportivo Cali & Millionarios, two of the best teams in Colombia's El Dorado era of football. In matches disputed in Guayaquil, Barcelona beat Millonarios twice 3-2 and 1-0.
In 1950, Barcelona won their first title in AFG's amateur tournament. The following year, AFG turned professional, and Barcelona competed as a professional team. From 1951 to 1967, Barcelona racked up five professional titles and finish as runner-up six times in the Guayas tournament, tying crosstown rival Emelec for the most titles. In 1957, as one of the top two finishers in the Guayas tournament, Barcelona participated in the newly organized national football championship, which was to be competed between the top two finishers of the Guayas tournament and the Interandino (Quito and Ambato) tournament; they finished second. In 1960, they won their first national title, and would go on to win two more by the end of the decade. In 1961, they became the first Ecuadorian team to compete in the Copa Libertadores.
- First match: June 15, 1925 vs C.S. Ayacucho (1-0)
- First international match: March 19, 1931 vs
Deportivo Cali (4-4)
[edit] The 1970s
By the 1970s, Barcelona established themselves as one of Ecuador's more popular teams after winning a number of provincial and national championships. Despite their national success, their international success in the Copa Libertadores was lackluster, having exited the tournament early in competition. That changed in 1971, when they reached the semi-finals of the tournament with a star-studded squad with players such as Brazilian international Jose Paes, Peruvian World Cup player Pedro León, and Ecuadorian legend Alberto Spencer. Although they failed to reach the finals, they managed to beat three-time tournament winner Estudiantes de La Plata 1-0 in Guayaquil. In 1972, they reached the semi-finals again, establishing themselves in the international stage.
After two great years, the club fell under a dry spell that would last 9 years. They would not win a national title, or qualify for the Copa Libertadores, until the next decade.
[edit] The 1980s
The 1980s saw Barcelona resurgence as a national and international competitor. In 1980, they won their first national title since 1971, and go on to win four more by the end of the decade, making the 1980s their most successful decade in terms of national titles and the first team to win 10 titles. They competed in six Copa Libertadores during that time, reaching the semi-finals twice in 1986 and 1987
In 1987, Barcelona inaugrated their new home stadium, Estadio Monumental. With capacity for almost 90,000 people, it became the largest stadium in Ecuador, and the second largest on the continent after the legendary Estádio do Maracanã in Rio de Janeiro.
[edit] The 1990s: The glory decade
Barcelona most successful international era came in the 1990s. Under a new president and with the acquisition of top-notch international players from Argentina (Marcelo Trobbiani, Alberto Acosta) and Uruguay (Marcelo Saralegui), Barcelona was determined to win the Copa Libertadores. In the 1990 tournament, Barcelona became the first Ecuadorian team to reach the finals after a thrilling series against Argentine power house River Plate. They could not seal they deal, as they would lose the finals to Olimpia of Paraguay.
For the 1992 edition, they would so far as the semi-finals, to which they lost to eventually Copa Libertadores and Intercontinental Cup champions São Paulo FC of Brazil.
In 1998, Barcelona would reach the finals of the Copa Libertadores again with an experienced squad that consisted of Bolivian Marco Etcheverry, Colombian Antony de Ávila, and Ecuadorian Agustín Delgado and José Francisco Cevallos. Again, they would fail to win the tournament, losing both legs to Vasco Da Gama. Despite that, Barcelona was considered to be one of the top 10 clubs in the world by Spanish magazine Don Balon.
Nationally, the 1990s proved to be a successful period. They won three more national titles, making their national title count at 13 and becoming the most successful team in Ecuador's history by the end of the decade.
[edit] Present
Despite not winning a national title since 1997 and having participated in only two Copa Libertadores in the 2000s, Barcelona remains one of the top football clubs in Ecuador, having been runner-up three times in the 2000s. They remain one of the top contributors to Ecuador's national football team, and is one of the most popular teams in Ecuador. The rivalry game with crosstown team Club Sport Emelec, the Clásico del Astillero, remains the most popular football game in Ecuador.
[edit] Colours and badge
The crest of Barcelona has changed over the years. The teams' first crest consisted of a modified version of the city of Barcelona's Coat of Arms in dark blue borders. The team used this crest for two years until 1927. In 1935, the first major change came when they used Barcelona's flag in a circle, with a triangle behind it baring the team's initials. In 1955, after the team won their first Guayas Championship, the team adopted their current crest, which is similar to FC Barcelona's. Changes they made to it included the number of spikes, the color of the ball, border color, and the initials.
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| Barcelona's original home kit in 1925. | |||||||||
The team's traditional colors are yellow and black, with the home kit being all yellow since the mid 1950's. Prior to that, the teams used to play in black and white kits. For a period early in their history, the team used the a kit similar to FC Barcelona's, but after a series of losses in that uniform, the team president swore never to wear those colors again. In the 1940s, yellow was introduced, and would eventually become the team's primary color, replacing white altogether; black would become the secondary color, used in their alternate kit.
[edit] Stadium
Barcelona has played in four stadiums. Their first stadium was Estadio George Capwell, with whom they shared with crosstown rival Emelec as it was the only stadium in Guayaquill.
In 1959, they moved to the Guayaquil's brand new stadium Estadio Modelo. This was the stadium in which the teams played in during the golden years. For several years Barcelona shared this stadium with Emelec and Patria.
After Estadio Modelo's success, the president of Barcelona, Isidro Romero Carbo, initiated the project to give Barcelona their own stadium. Romero talked with Jaime Nebot, Guayaquil's mayor, and León Febres Cordero, then President of Ecuador (both of whom are Barcelona fans) about the idea; they decided to help. Nebot donated a huge ground, the San Eduardo garbage dump site, for construction and Febres Cordero helped him with money. In 1986, Romero put up the first block of the stadium in 1986. In 1987, Estadio Monumental opened for the first time. The stadium was the first in Ecuador to have suites, and became the largest in terms of capacity, with space for close to 90,000 fans.
Recently the team signed a ten year deal with Latin America Futbol Corporation to install a state of the art LED perimeter board in the Estadio Monumental Banco Pichincha. The 243 meter LED perimeter board was installed in September, 2008 and is the first LED perimeter board in an Ecuadorian football stadium. The deal is a 50-50 partnership between the two groups.
[edit] Supporters
Barcelona's ultras are known as La Sur Oscura (English: The Dark Side). They are known to be one of the Biggest fan-bases in the country. During home matches, they are located in the southern end of the Estadio Monumental, and are known for tendency to emulate the chants of opposing ultras, such as Emelec's La Boca del Pozo (English: the Mouth of the Well).
[edit] Current squad
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[edit] Squad changes during 2008/09 season
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Players In
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Players Out
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[edit] Noted players
Sorted by nationality (nickname in parenthesis).
