Futbol Club Barcelona is a football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain that competes in La Liga, the most senior football league in Spain. Since its founding in 1899, the club has had 41 different presidents. The club is owned by the club-members of Barcelona, and similarly to a limited liability company, they elect the president by a ballot. The president has the responsibility for the overall management of the club, including formally signing contracts with players and staff. In Spain, it is customary for the president to watch the games in which the first-team participates, together with the president from the opposing team.
On 22 October 1899, Swiss sportsman Joan Gamper placed an advertisement in the Los Deportes newspaper declaring his wish to form a football club in the city. A positive response resulted in a meeting at the Gimnasio Solé on 29 November which eleven men attended, including Walter Wild, later to become the first president of the club, and Bartomeu Terradas, who became the second president. As a result of this meeting, Barcelona was formed. [1]
In 1908, Gamper became club president for the first time, taking over the presidency to save the club from extinction. [1] The club had not won anything since the Campionat de Catalunya in 1905, and as a result was experiencing severe financial difficulties. Gamper was subsequently club president on five separate occasions between 1908 and 1925 and spent 26 years with the club. One of his main achievements was to help Barça acquire its own stadium and thus a way of generating stable income. [1] An annual pre-season competition, the Joan Gamper Trophy, has been held in his honour since 1966. [2]
The team won six Campionat de Catalunya titles between 1930 and 1938, [3] but success at national level (with the exception of the 1937 disputed title) evaded them. From the formation of La Liga until 1978, Barcelona had 20 different presidents, meaning each presidential period lasted on average two-and-a-half years. In 1978, Josep Lluís Núñez became the first elected president of Barcelona, and ever since members of the club have elected the club president. The process of electing a president of Barcelona was closely tied to Spain's transition to democracy in 1974 and the end of Franco's dictatorship. Núñez's main objective was to develop Barça into a world-class club by giving it stability both on and off the pitch. [4] His presidency lasted for 22 years, making him the longest-serving president.
After the departure of Núñez in 2000, his vice-president through the 22 years of his tenure, Joan Gaspart took over the club. During his presidency of the club, the team won no trophies and, after two-and-a-half years, Gaspart resigned his position on 12 February 2003, with the team in 15th place, two points above the relegation zone. [5] Enric Reyna was elected as temporary president until the board resigned on 5 May 2003. Hereafter, an interim commission presided until the general elections were held. [6] On 15 June 2003, Joan Laporta entered office, and was the most successful president in terms of Champions league trophies. The club won the Champions League twice within three years and completed an "unprecedented sextuple" by winning the 2008–09 La Liga, the 2008–09 Copa del Rey, the 2009 Supercopa de España, the 2008–09 UEFA Champions League, the 2009 UEFA Super Cup and the 2009 FIFA Club World Cup. [7]
On 13 June 2010, Sandro Rosell was elected president of Barcelona with more than 60% of the vote of Barça's club members, and he formally took over the presidency on 1 July 2010. He resigned in 2014 as a result of a scandal involving the signing of Neymar. [8]
Josep Maria Bartomeu replaced Rosell on January 23, 2014, before resigning in October 2020. A management commission led by Carles Tusquets took over, until Joan Laporta was elected for a second time on 7 March 2021 with over 54% of the vote. [9]
Below is the official presidential history of Barcelona, from when Walter Wild took over at the club in 1899 until the present day. [10]
Name | Nationality [n 1] | From | To | Honours (total number) |
---|---|---|---|---|
Walter Wild | ![]() | 29 November 1899 | 25 April 1901 | |
Bartomeu Terradas | ![]() | 25 April 1901 | 5 September 1902 | |
Paul Haas | ![]() | 5 September 1902 | 17 September 1903 | |
Arthur Witty | ![]() | 17 September 1903 | 6 October 1905 | |
Josep Soler | ![]() | 6 October 1905 | 16 October 1906 | |
Juli Marial | ![]() | 16 October 1906 | 11 November 1908 | |
Vicente Reig | ![]() | 11 November 1908 | 2 December 1908 | |
Joan Gamper | ![]() | 2 December 1908 | 14 October 1909 | |
Otto Gmeling | ![]() | 14 October 1909 | 17 November 1910 | 1 Copa del Rey (1) |
Joan Gamper | ![]() | 17 November 1910 | 30 June 1913 | 2 Copa del Rey (2) |
Francesc de Moxó | ![]() | 30 June 1913 | 30 July 1914 | |
Àlvar Presta | ![]() | 30 July 1914 | 29 September 1914 | |
Joaquim Peris de Vargas | ![]() | 29 September 1914 | 29 June 1915 | |
Rafael Llopart | ![]() | 29 June 1915 | 25 June 1916 | |
Gaspar Rosés | ![]() | 25 June 1916 | 17 June 1917 | |
Joan Gamper | ![]() | 17 June 1917 | 10 June 1919 | |
Ricard Graells | ![]() | 10 June 1919 | 27 June 1920 | 1 Copa del Rey (1) |
Gaspar Rosés | ![]() | 27 June 1920 | 17 July 1921 | |
Joan Gamper | ![]() | 17 July 1921 | 29 July 1923 | 1 Copa del Rey (1) |
Eric Cardona | ![]() | 29 July 1923 | 1 June 1924 | |
Joan Gamper | ![]() | 1 June 1924 | 17 December 1925 | 1 Copa del Rey (1) |
Arcadi Balaguer | ![]() | 17 December 1925 | 23 March 1929 | 2 Copa del Rey (2) |
Tomàs Rosés | ![]() | 23 March 1929 | 30 June 1930 | 1 La Liga (1) |
Gaspar Rosés | ![]() | 30 June 1930 | 22 October 1931 | |
Antonio Oliver | ![]() | 22 October 1931 | 20 December 1931 | |
Joan Coma | ![]() | 20 December 1931 | 16 July 1934 | |
Esteve Sala | ![]() | 16 July 1934 | 27 July 1935 | |
Josep Sunyol | ![]() | 27 July 1935 | 6 August 1936 [11] | |
Managing Commission[ citation needed ] | N/A | 6 August 1936 | 6 May 1939 | |
Joan Soler | ![]() | 6 May 1939 | 13 March 1940 | |
Enrique Piñeyro | ![]() | 13 March 1940 | 10 July 1942 | 1 Copa del Rey (1) |
Josep Vidal-Ribas | ![]() | 10 July 1942 | 13 August 1942 | |
Enrique Piñeyro | ![]() | 13 August 1942 | 20 August 1943 | |
Josep Antoni de Albert | ![]() | 20 August 1943 | 20 September 1943 | |
Josep Vendrell | ![]() | 20 September 1943 | 20 September 1946 | 1 La Liga, 1 Copa Eva Duarte (2) |
Agustí Montal Galobart | ![]() | 20 September 1946 | 16 July 1952 | 3 La Liga, 2 Copa del Rey, 2 Copa Eva Duarte (7) |
Enric Martí Carreto | ![]() | 16 July 1952 | 22 September 1953 | 1 La Liga, 1 Copa del Rey, 1 Copa Eva Duarte (3) |
Francesc Miró-Sans | ![]() | 22 September 1953 | 28 February 1961 | 2 La Liga, 2 Copa del Rey, 2 Fairs Cup (6) |
Enric Llaudet | ![]() | 28 February 1961 | 17 January 1968 | 1 Copa del Rey, 1 Fairs Cup (2) |
Narcís de Carreras | ![]() | 17 January 1968 | 18 December 1969 | 1 Copa del Rey (1) |
Agustí Montal Costa | ![]() | 18 December 1969 | 18 December 1977 | 1 La Liga, 1 Copa del Rey (2) |
Raimon Carrasco | ![]() | 18 December 1977 | 1 July 1978 | 1 Copa del Rey (1) |
Josep Lluís Núñez | ![]() | 1 July 1978 | 23 July 2000 | 7 La Liga, 6 Copa del Rey, 2 Copa de la Liga, 5 Spanish Supercup, 1 European Cup, 4 Cup Winners' Cup, 2 UEFA Super Cup (27) |
Joan Gaspart | ![]() | 23 July 2000 | 12 February 2003 | |
Enric Reyna | ![]() | 12 February 2003 | 6 May 2003 | |
Managing Commission[ citation needed ] | N/A | 6 May 2003 | 15 June 2003 | |
Joan Laporta [n 2] | ![]() | 15 June 2003 | 1 July 2010 | 4 La Liga, 1 Copa del Rey, 3 Spanish Supercup, 2 Champions League, 1 UEFA Super Cup, 1 FIFA Club World Cup (12) |
Sandro Rosell | ![]() | 1 July 2010 | 23 January 2014 | 2 La Liga, 1 Copa del Rey, 3 Spanish Supercup, 1 UEFA Champions League, 1 UEFA Super Cup, 1 FIFA Club World Cup (9) |
Josep Maria Bartomeu | ![]() | 23 January 2014 | 27 October 2020 | 4 La Liga, 4 Copa del Rey, 2 Spanish Supercup, 1 UEFA Champions League, 1 UEFA Super Cup, 1 FIFA Club World Cup (13) |
Carles Tusquets (interim) [n 3] | ![]() | 29 October 2020 | 7 March 2021 | |
Joan Laporta | ![]() | 7 March 2021 | Incumbent | 1 La Liga, 1 Copa del Rey, 1 Spanish Supercup (3) |
Futbol Club Barcelona, commonly known as FC Barcelona and colloquially as Barça, is a professional football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of Spanish football.
Hans Max Gamper-Haessig, commonly known as Joan Gamper, was a Swiss-born football executive and versatile athlete. He founded football clubs in Switzerland and Spain, most notably Barcelona and Zürich.
Joan Laporta i Estruch is a Catalan politician and current president of Barcelona.
José Luis Núñez Clemente, often known by the Catalanized form of his name used by the Catalan press, Josep Lluís Núñez i Clemente, was president of Barcelona between 1978 and 2000. He was elected club president, despite having no previous connection with the club. His main objectives were to establish Barça as a world class sports club and to give the club financial stability.
Carles Rexach Cerdà is a Spanish former football winger and manager.
The Joan Gamper Trophy or Joan Gamper Cup is an annual association football exhibition match held in August, before the start of Barcelona's La Liga season, where top division clubs from the world compete against them. The competition is hosted by FC Barcelona at the Camp Nou stadium and is named in honour of Joan Gamper, a founding member, player, and later president of the club. The competition was inaugurated in 1966 by Enric Llaudet, one of Gamper's successors as club president. The trophy itself is an 800-gram (1.8 lb) silver cup with five micrometres of gold finishing, on top of a 10-kilogram (22 lb) marble plinth base.
FC Barcelona is a professional multi-sports club based in Barcelona, formed in 1899 by a group of Swiss, Catalan, German and English footballers led by Joan Gamper. It has been part of the Spanish top-flight, La Liga, since the league's inception in 1928, winning it 27 times, along with a record 31 Copa del Rey and 5 UEFA Champions League victories.
Joan Gaspart i Solves is a Spanish businessman and a former Barcelona president between July 2000 and February 2003. He was born in Barcelona. He was vice president of the club during the presidency of Josep Lluís Nuñez between 1978 and 2000, before becoming president himself. He was heavily criticised for his presidency that lasted from 2000 to 2003, and also labelled himself as a poor president of the club. Gaspart spent the money from the sale of Luís Figo to Real Madrid, by buying Emmanuel Petit and Marc Overmars from Arsenal and Gerard from Valencia.
Futbol Club Barcelona Atlètic, commonly referred to as Barça Atlètic or Barça B, is a football team based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in Primera Federación – Group 1, the third tier of the Spanish league system. Founded in 1970, it is the reserve team of FC Barcelona and it plays its home fixtures at Johan Cruyff Stadium.
Alexandre "Sandro" Rosell Feliu is a Spanish businessman. He earned an MBA degree from ESADE. Rosell ran as senior adviser of Joan Laporta during the 2003 Barcelona elections and was the vice-president of sports until June 2005. He was the president of Barcelona from 2010 to 2014. In 2017, Rosell was jailed without bail as part of a money laundering investigation related to buying television rights for past matches of the Brazil national team. On 24 April 2019, after a total of 643 days of pre-trial detention and with the provisional release of Rosell having been rejected on as much as 13 occasions, Spanish courts fully acquitted Rosell.
The history of Futbol Club Barcelona begins from the football club's founding in 1899 up until the present day. FC Barcelona, also known simply as Barcelona and familiarly as Barça, is based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. The club was founded in 1899 by a group of Swiss, Catalan, German, and English footballers led by Joan Gamper. The club played amateur football until 1910 in various regional competitions. In 1910, the club participated in their first of many European competitions, and has since amassed fourteen UEFA trophies and a sextuple. In 1928, Barcelona co-founded La Liga, the top-tier in Spanish football, along with a string of other clubs. As of 2023, Barcelona has never been relegated from La Liga, a record they share with Athletic Bilbao and arch-rival Real Madrid.
The 1899–1900 season was the first season for FC Barcelona. During this season, the club only played friendly matches against local clubs.
Ricard Graells was the 15th president of FC Barcelona from 10 June 1919 to 27 June 1920. He took over the club after the founder Joan Gamper resigned presidency for the third time. Under his presidency the team won the double in 1920, the Campionat de Catalunya and the Copa del Rey.
Josep Maria Bartomeu Floreta is a Spanish entrepreneur and former president of FC Barcelona. He started his presidency in 2014, following the resignation of Sandro Rosell; he held the post until his resignation in 2020. He was replaced by interim Barcelona president Carlos Tusquets, and afterwards by election winner Joan Laporta.
Javier Faus is a leading Spanish private equity investor, chairman and founder of the Barcelona-based alternative investment fund management firm Meridia Capital Partners. Very active in civic associations, he served as Vice Chairman of FC Barcelona. From july 2019 until july 2022, he chaired the Cercle d'Economia, a leading Spanish think tank that promotes liberal democracy public policies.
The 2015 FC Barcelona presidential election was the thirteenth FC Barcelona presidential election, held on Saturday 18 July 2015. The interim president Josep Maria Bartomeu's candidacy got re-elected by defeating the three other main challengers: Joan Laporta, former President of the club, Toni Freixa, a former executive, and Agustí Benedito, an entrepreneur. The voters of the election were the 109,637 FC Barcelona socis (members) at the Camp Nou, who voted through a universal suffrage system and elected their new president for 6 years. The final turnout was 43.12%, a decrease of a 5% since the last election.
The 2021 FC Barcelona presidential election took place on 7 March 2021 for electing the 42nd President of the club.
The I3 Ventures case, also known as Barçagate or Bartogate, was an alleged defamation campaign of FC Barcelona on social media uncovered on 17 February 2020 by journalists Adrià Soldevila and Sergi Escudero of the program Què T'hi Jugues of Cadena SER. This defamation campaign would consist of hiring a company called I3Ventures.sl to create states of opinion on social media, through dozens of "unofficial" accounts of the club that would be dedicated to protecting the image of Josep Maria Bartomeu who is accused of rigging football matches for FC Barcelona and at the same time also attacking people from different areas of the Barça environment. Among the objective profiles of the defamation campaign would be then players such as Lionel Messi or Gerard Piqué, former players such as Xavi, Carles Puyol and Pep Guardiola, and also local figures such as Víctor Font, Joan Laporta, Jaume Roures, as well as profiles of pro-independence organizations and even political figures such as Quim Torra and Carles Puigdemont, Òmnium Cultural, the Assemblea Nacional Catalana, and the Democratic Tsunami.
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