Today is a sad day for FCBarcelona family. They pay tribute and remember JosepSunyol i Garriga, the president of Futbol ClubBarcelona who was murdered by francoist troops on a day like today in 1936, and whose body has never been recovered like thousands and thousands of victims of the Spanish Civil War, who are still waiting for justice and reparation almost eighty nine years later. Wecontinue working for this recognition, and we won't stop until the last victim has been recovered, brought to his/her family, buried with dignity and honoured.
The Grandma wants to talk about Josep Sunyol i Garriga, who also was an important Catalan politician, and the president of the Catalan Football Federation.
Josep Sunyol i Garriga (21 July 1898, Barcelona-6 August 1936, Sierra de Guadarrama) was a Catalan lawyer, journalist and politician.
He was president of FC Barcelona, a prominent politician for the Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya (ERC), and ERC deputy in the Congress of Deputies in 1931, 1933 and 1936.
Sunyol came from both a wealthy family and a long line of Catalan political militants. He was a member of Acció Catalana, a left-wing group and Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya.
In 1928, he became a director of FC Barcelona and in 1930 he founded the left-wing newspaper La Rambla, which opposed the Primo de Rivera regime.
In 1931, he was elected to the Cortes as an ERC deputy. He was subsequently re-elected in 1933 and 1936.
He served as president of both the Reial Automòbil Club de Catalunya (RACC) and the Federació Catalana de Futbol (FCF).
In 1935, he was elected president of FC Barcelona.
On 6 August 1936, during the early days of the Spanish Civil War, Sunyol was arrested by Francoist troops in the Sierra de Guadarrama and was then murdered by one of Franco's soldiers.
A memorial stone to Sunyol was placed in a park nearby the location he was killed, and Sunyol is now described as the Martyr President by FC Barcelona.
Today, The Grandma has enjoyed FC Barcelona WomenJoan Gamper Trophy at Estadi Johan Cruyff in Sant Joan Despí.
The Joan Gamper Trophy, in Catalan Trofeu JoanGamper, 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 FCBarcelona at the CampNou stadium (men) and at Johan Cruyff stadium (women) 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'ssuccessors as club president.
The trophy itself is an 800-gram silver cup with five micrometres of gold finishing, on top of a 10-kilogram marble plinth base.
Initially, four teams participated in the competition, which featured two semi-finals, a third-place play-off, and a final.
For the first competition in 1966 (men), Barcelona were joined by Belgium's Anderlecht, France's Nantes, and Germany's 1. FC Köln. Barcelona beat the German team 3-1 in the final. Köln subsequently won the competition in 1978 and 1981 and were runners-up in 1979, making them the only team, other than the hosts, to win the competition more than once.
Once again, Barça Women start their season with the Joan Gamper Trophy at the team's base, the Estadi Johan Cruyff. Just a few days before leaving to tour the USA, the blaugranes will be reunited with their fans for the first home game against AC Milan on Friday August 23.
The event will include the team's presentation to the fans plus a wide range of different fun activities and musicians performing live to suit everyone's tastes.
Fans will be able to enjoy different games and surprises, which will include a DJ set, games in the stands and on the big screen relating to the women's first team and the Club's 125th anniversary, a shower of shirts for those in attendance, as well as Estrella Damm games both pre-match and at half time, with the usual hosts whipping up the atmosphere. Ginestà are the guest musical duo, and they will sing the Barça anthem pre-match, while performing one of their own songs at half time.
One of the most eagerly waited moments of the event will undoubtedly be the presentation of the squad and the coaching staff. As usual, the players will take to the pitch one by one to greet the fans, including the new coach and the recent signings.
Something new for this edition of the Gamper game will be the jersey the players wear against AC Milan, as the men's first team did at the Gamper on August 8. Given the Club will celebrate its 125th anniversary this year, the blaugranes' kit will have a specially created logo on the right sleeve to commemorate the year the Club was founded, which was presented a few months ago at an event with president Joan Laporta and the 125th anniversary commissioner, David Carabén. This won't be the only time this logo will appear as it will be used on other items throughout the season as the 125th anniversary celebrations continue.
The first three editions of the women's Gamper game took place at EstadiJohanCruyff and this edition will be the fourth. The trophy remained at home for the previous three editions.
Today, The Grandma talks about María León, aka Mapi León, the Aragoneseprofessional footballer who was born on a day like today in 1995.
María Pilar León Cebrián (born 13 June 1995), known as Mapi León, is an Aragonese professional footballer who plays as a defender for FC Barcelona.
León began her career with her hometown club of Prainsa Zaragoza before moving on to Espanyol and Atlético Madrid. At Atlético, she made the transition from a left-back to a center-back under the guidance of coach Ángel Villacampa. León won the first league and Copa de la Reina titles of her career at the club.
In 2017, León signed for Barcelona with a fee of 50,000 euros. Domestically with Barcelona, she has won five Copas de la Reina, four league titles, and three Supercopa Femenina. On the continental stage, she has played in five Champions League finals with the club in 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024 winning the 2021, 2023 and 2024.
As of 2023 she refused to play for the Spanish National Team, citing unequal and unfair conditions.
María Pilar León Cebrián was born 13 June 1995. León was raised with an older brother in La Almozara, a district of Zaragoza.
León started playing volleyball at age seven, and played many other sports as a child including baseball. Later she started playing futsal for local team Gran Vía, where she played as a winger. Around this age, she was granted a scholarship to go to an art school, but turned down the award to focus on football.
León was discovered by David Magaña, a former Zaragoza CFF sporting director, who noticed her and her brother playing football while shopping in a supermarket. She began training with the club at age 11.
After developing with their B team for two years, León debuted with Prainsa Zaragoza when she was 16. Her match debut with Zaragoza was against Barcelona.
In 2013, Zaragoza made it to the final of the Copa de la Reina, where they faced León's future club FC Barcelona. In her last ever match with the club, León started the final as Zaragoza lost 4-0 to Barcelona, who completed their first domestic double.
At 18, León joined RCD Espanyol in 2013, where she remained for only one season.
In 2014, León joined Atlético Madrid. In 2015, León debuted in the UWCL against Russian side Zorky Krasnogorsk, where they were defeated 2-0 in the first leg. Atlético later came back 3-0 to win the tie, but were defeated in the Round of 16 by Lyon on a 9-1 aggregate score.
Within her time at Atlético, León switched from playing as a left-back to playing as a centre-back under the influence of former left-back and Atlético head coach Ángel Villacampa. León won the first league title of her career in the 2016-17 season, when Atlético defeated Real Sociedad on the final matchday of the season. Her performances throughout the season earned her a place in the league's best XI of the season, as well as putting her on FC Barcelona's radar.
On 24 August 2017, León's transfer to Barcelona was made official, the club's sixth signing ahead of the 2017-18 season. With a year remaining on her contract with Atlético Madrid, León signed for a fee of €50,000.
In 2020, León was named as a candidate for UEFA Women's Team of the Year for the first time in her career.
On 6 January 2021, León started the first competitive match at the Camp Nou played by women's teams.
León criticised the Royal Spanish Football Federation for not implementing video-assistant referreeing (VAR) in the competition, which the men's version of the competition does have.
In March 2021, she was suspended for four matches and fined €601 by the RFEF for criticising the quality of refereeing in the Primera Iberdrola after receiving a controversial red card against Real Madrid. Barcelona appealed the decision to the Administrative Tribunal of Sport (TAD), and León was able to play against second-place opponent Levante in their upcoming league match. Spain's footballing union, the Association of Spanish Footballers (AFE), issued a statement of support for León, calling the suspension an attempt to curtail her freedom of speech and expression. The following month, she made her 100th league appearance with Barcelona against UD Granadilla. León became a league champion with Barcelona for the second time on 9 May 2021.
Barcelona made it to the 2021 UEFA Women's Champions League Final after defeating Paris Saint-Germain on an aggregate score of 2-1. They won 4–0, the first UEFA Women's Champions League title in club history. León was named to the 2020-21 UEFA Women's Champions League Squad of the Season, and was later listed as a nominee to the UEFA Women's Champions League Defender of the Season award. Following the conclusion of the Champions League, León played each minute of the remaining semifinal and final of the 2021 Copa de la Reina. Barcelona won the final 4-2, achieving the continental treble for the first time in their history.
On 20 November 2022, she scored on her 200th appearance for Barcelona in her team's 8–0 thrashing of Alavés in a league game.
On 3 June 2023, Mapi played the entire match as Barcelona won 3-2 against VfL Wolfsburg in the final to win her second Women's Champions League title. She won The Best prize during that season.
During the 2023-2024 season, León suffered a knee injury that avoided her to participate in the regular competition, the UWCL and Copa de la Reina. She returned in June, 9 in a match against Real Betis Balompié Féminas.
Today, Claire Fontaine and TheGrandma have attended the 2024 UWCLFinal in SanMamés Stadium, Bilbo,where FC Barcelona has proclaimed the winner after defeating OlympiqueLyonnais 2-0with goals scored by AitanaBonmatí and AlexiaPutellas.
Futbol Club BarcelonaFemení,commonly referred to as Barça Femení is a Catalan professional women's football team based in Barcelona.
It is the women's football section of FC Barcelona and competes in the Liga F, playing home games at the Johan Cruyff Stadium in Sant Joan Despí, and occasionally at the Camp Nou or EstadiOlímpic Lluís Companys.
The club was formed in 1970 with some financial and logistical supportfrom FC Barcelona, but without being an official section. In its inaugural season it competed in matches against other Catalan teams and was known as Selecció Ciutat de Barcelona, taking the name Peña Femenina Barcelonista in 1971.
It was a founding member of the Liga Nacional, in 1988, when it became known as Club Femení Barcelona, and in 2002, when it officially became a section of FC Barcelona, it took the official name Futbol Club Barcelona.
Since the club's professionalisation in 2015, Barcelona cemented itself as dominant women's football team, becoming the league's most successful team in the UEFA Women's Champions League, and one of the most successful women's football teams in Europe. It won the Champions League in 2021, 2023 and 2024.
Women's football in Barcelona, had a certain level of popularity in the 1960s, but was amateur and unofficial. The embryo of Barcelona Femení was the Selecció Ciutat de Barcelona, formed in November 1970.
In at least as early as the 1960s, FC Barcelona had women's teams play in exhibition games at the Camp Nou; the club does not consider these antecedents to its current women's team as they were teams that had been created only for that occasion, unlike Selecció Ciutatde Barcelona, which was created with the idea of continuity and laying the groundwork for a future project.
Upon Barcelona announcing Selecció Barcelona as its new women's team, El Noticiero Universal reported that the club had almost pioneered women's football many years earlier, having gone so far as to organise a game that could not be played for reasons beyond their control.
In 2020-21, they won the Champions League for the first time by defeatingChelsea 4–0 in the final.
In 2022-2023, they won the Champions League for the second time by defeating Wolfsburg 2–3 in the final.
On 25 May 2024, Barcelona completed the second continental treble and first continental quadruple in the club's history by defeating Lyon 2-0 in the 2024 Champions League final; it was their first defeat of longstanding European rivals Lyon.
Barcelona Femení has a fan base distinct from that of the men's team, even when the team has sold out the main stadiums. The popularity of the team grew vastly in the years after it became professional.
The team moved to the Johan Cruyff Stadium in 2019, located in Sant JoanDespí, a town north of the city of Barcelona. They previously played at the Mini Estadi, next to the Camp Nou. Despite playing outside of the city, by 2022 the team had averaged crowds four times larger than when they played at the Mini Estadi.
Today, The Grandma has been reading about Udo Lattek, the German professional football player and coach, who was born on a day like today in 1935.
Udo Lattek (16 January 1935-31 January 2015) was a German professional football player and coach.
Lattek is one of the most successful coaches in the history of the game, having won 15 major titles, most famously with Bayern Munich. He also won major trophies with Borussia Mönchengladbach and FC Barcelona. In addition to these clubs, his managerial career saw him coach Borussia Dortmund, Schalke 04 and 1. FC Köln before his retirement from the game.
He is the only coach to have won all three major European club titles, and he is the only one to do so with three teams.
Lattek was born in Bosemb, East Prussia, Germany (now Boże, Poland). While Lattek was preparing for a career as a teacher, he played football with SSV Marienheide, Bayer 04 Leverkusen and VfR Wipperfürth.
In 1962, he joined VfL Osnabrück. He spent his first season at the club in the first division (the northern division of the Oberliga) and the remainder of his time in the second division, as the club did not qualify for the new Bundesliga at its inception 1963. He played primarily as a centre forward and became known for his heading ability. He scored 34 goals in 70 league matches between 1962 and 1965.
Early in 1965, Lattek was prematurely released from his playing contract to join the German football association DFB as a youth team coach alongside Dettmar Cramer, one of the assistants to head coach Helmut Schön. In this role he was also part of the coaching staff which led Germany into the final of the 1966 World Cup.
In March 1970, Lattek took over the reins of Bayern Munich as successor of the Croatian, Branko Zebec. He was recommended to the club by Franz Beckenbauer, however his appointment was controversial as he had never previously coached a club side. To a team already boasting Beckenbauer, Gerd Müller and Sepp Maier, Lattek added the young talents of Paul Breitner and Uli Hoeneß, ushering in a period of near dominance for the Bavarian club.
At the beginning of the 1975-76 season, Lattek succeeded Hennes Weisweiler at Borussia Mönchengladbach, where he stayed until 1979.
At the end of that season, Lattek quit Mönchengladbach and spent two undistinguished years with Borussia Dortmund.
In 1981, Lattek was appointed successor to Helenio Herrera at Spanish club FCBarcelona. He led the club to the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1982, defeating Standard Liège 2-1 in the final.
He is the only coach to lead three clubs to three different major European trophies.
On the field Barcelona was led by Migueli, Alexanco, Rexach, Asensi, Quini, the German Bernd Schuster, and the Dane, Allan Simonsen, Lattek's star signing from his old club, Mönchengladbach.
In the second season Diego Maradona, then 22 years of age, was signed for a record transfer fee. However Barcelona did not win any domestic titles that year, and Lattek was replaced at the end of the 1982-83 season by the World Cup winning Argentine coach, César Luis Menotti, who it was hoped would bring out the best in Maradona.
Lattek got his next managerial appointment from his former player Uli Hoeneß, who was by then in charge as commercial manager with his old side, Bayern Munich.
After the heady days at Bayern, Lattek retired for a few years.
Lattek officially retired and took up a role as TV commentator and newspaper columnist with the national broadsheet Die Welt and the bi-weekly sports magazine kicker.
Lattek retired having won 14 major trophies. He still holds the record for having managed teams to the most Bundesliga titles, six with Bayern Munich and two with Borussia Mönchengladbach.
He lived in a nursing home in Cologne, where he was known for his continuous fondness of beer (all great coaches have enjoyed a drink).
Today, The Grandma and Claire Fontaine have visited JohanCruyff Stadium in Sant Joan Despí. She has enjoyed an exciting game between FCBarcelona and Alhama.
The Grandma loves football, and she is a great supporter of all FC Barcelona sections, especially women's team, that was formed in 1970.
Johan Cruyff Stadium, in Catalan EstadiJohan Cruyff, is a football stadium operated by FC Barcelonain Sant JoanDespí, Barcelona, Catalonia, located in the Ciutat Esportiva Joan Gamper, the club's training facility and youth academy, about 7 km from Camp Nou.
The stadium is home to FC Barcelona women's team, FC Barcelona Atlètic and Juvenil A (U19 A team). It is named in honour of legendary Dutch footballer Johan Cruyff. It is a UEFA Category 3 stadium and houses 6,000 supporters.
Estadi Johan Cruyff broke ground on 14 September 2017 and was completed in Summer 2019. It was opened on 27 August 2019 with a friendly match between the under-19 teams of Barcelona and Ajax. The match ended up in a 0–2 score where Ajax was the winner.
On 26 August 2019, a day before the stadium was officially opened to the public, FC Barcelonapaid tribute to Cruyff by unveiling his statue at Camp Nou.
Futbol Club Barcelona Femení, commonly referred to as Barça Femení, is a Catalan professional women's football team based in Barcelona, Catalonia.
It's the women's football section of FC Barcelona and it competes in the Primera División, the top tier of Spanish women's football.
Formed in 1970 by 18-year-old Immaculada "Imma" Cabecerán, the club was an establishing member of Spain's first recognized women's league, the Primera División, founded as the Liga Nacional.
Although being closely associated with the club for decades, the team was not established as an official section of FC Barcelona until 2002, when the club definitively incorporated Club Femení Barcelona into its sports structure. Through battles with promotion and relegation, the club won their first league title in 2011.
Domestically, Barcelona Femení has won a record 18 trophies: 7 Primera División, 9 Copas de la Reina, and two Spanish Supercups titles.
By
winning the Champions League, FC Barcelona became the first club to win a
Champions League title for both its men and women's footballing
sections.
Barcelona Femení plays its home games at Johan Cruyff Stadium in Sant Joan Despí, and occasionally at the Camp Nou.
FC Barcelona is not a sports corporation (SAD), as its ownership rests with its memberships, called socis.
One morning in November 1970, 18-year-old Catalan amateur footballer Immaculada ImmaCabecerán Soler met with former FC Barcelona president Agustí Montal Costa to discuss the formation of a women'steam associated with the club.
On 17 November 1970, in a way akin to Joan Gamper, Cabecerán posted a print advertisement in an FC Barcelona fan magazine called La Revista Barcelonista. She called for women between the ages 18-25 to play in an exhibition match the following month at the Camp Nou.
The team came to fruition and was formed of 17 individuals- Maria Antònia Mínguez, Llera, Giménez, Pilar Gazulla, Lluïsa Vilaseca, Aurora Arnau, Anna Jaques, Maite Rodríguez, Immaculada Cabecerán, Núria Llansà, Alicia Estivill, Blanca Fernández, Lolita Ortiz, Consuelo Pérez, Carme Nieto, Fina Ros and Glòria Comas- all of whom were all trained by Barcelona legends Antoni Ramallets and César Rodríguez, although the latter left after a few days. The team played their first match on Christmas Day, 1970, winning on penalties against Unió Esportiva Centelles in front of a crowd of around 60,000 people.
The match, played under the name Selección Ciudad de Barcelona, was a charity match organised by Ràdio Nacional to raise funds for local children's hospitals. Although the team was not officially recognized by the club, it was the first match played by a women's team associated with FC Barcelona (then known as CF Barcelona). The team later evolved into Penya Femenina Barça, and Ramallets coached them until 1972.
During the 1980s, the team was renamed Club Femení Barcelona. They reached an informal integration agreement with FC Barcelona where they were allowed to use the colors, badges and facilities of the club, but it took a few more years to adopt the crest. On 29 June, 1985, the team won its first competition- the Generalitat Cup.
In 1988, Club Femení Barcelona, which was sponsored by FC Barcelona, was a founding member of the Liga Nacional, now known as the Primera División, the first women's league recognized by the RFEF. They had a successful 3-year run in the early 1990s, winning the 1994 Copa de la Reina and being the championship's runner-up in 1992 and 1994, but they subsequently declined to bottom table positions.
In the summer of 2015, the club made the decision to professionalize the women's section.
In the seasons that followed, Barcelona placed a greater priority on competing in the UEFA Women's Champions League. The club reached their first Women's Champions League semifinal in the 2016-17 season, and also defeated Atlético Madrid Femenino in the 2017 Copa de la Reina.
On 16 May 2021, Barcelona won the UEFA Women's Champions League title for the first time after they beat Chelsea 4–0 in the final in Gothenburg, with all four goals coming within the first 36 minutes of the match.
In doing so, Barcelona became the first ever club to have been European champions in both men's and women's football.
Today, The Grandma homages one of her idols, Johan Cruyff, the Dutch professional football player and coach who played and managed AmsterdamscheFootball Club Ajax and FutbolClub Barcelona. Johan was a genius and a visionary in the world of sport and his loss was a terrible tragedy for everybody because he was one of the most brilliant and intelligent minds of our age. The Grandma is deeply sad with the absence of her greatest idol. Before remembering Johan Cruyff, TheGrandma has studied a new lesson of her Intermediate Language Practicemanual (Grammar 43).
Hendrik Johannes Cruijff (25 April 1947-24 March 2016) was a Dutchprofessional football player and coach. As a player, he won the Ballon d'Or three times, in 1971, 1973, and 1974. Cruyff was the most famous exponent of the football philosophy known as Total Football explored by Rinus Michels, and is widely regarded as one of the greatest players in football history.
In the late 1960s and early 1970s, Dutch football rose from obscurity to become a powerhouse in the sport. Cruyff led the Netherlands to the final of the 1974 FIFA World Cup and received the Golden Ball as player of the tournament. At the 1974 finals, he executed a feint that subsequently was named after him, the Cruyff Turn, a move widely replicated in the modern game. Wearing the number14 jersey, he set a trend for wearing shirt numbers outside the usual starting line-up numbers of one to eleven.
At club level, Cruyff started his career at Ajax, where he won eight Eredivisie titles, three European Cups and one Intercontinental Cup. In 1973, he moved to Barcelona for a world record transfer fee, winning La Liga in his first season and was named European Footballer of the Year. After retiring from playing in 1984, Cruyff became highly successful as manager of Ajax and later Barcelona; he remained an influential advisor to both clubs. His son Jordi also played football professionally.
Johan Cruyff, Ajax
In 1999, Cruyff was voted European Player of the Century in an election held by the International Federation of Football History & Statistics, and came second behind Pelé in their World Player of the Century poll. He came third in a vote organised by the French magazine France Football consulting their former Ballon d'Or winners to elect their Football Player of the Century. He was chosen on the World Team of the 20th Century in 1998, the FIFA World Cup Dream Team in 2002, and in 2004 was named in the FIFA 100 list of the world's greatest living players.
Considered to be one of the most influential figures in football history, Cruyff's style of play and his football philosophy has influenced managers and players, including the likes of Arrigo Sacchi, Sir Alex Ferguson, Arsène Wenger, Pep Guardiola, Frank Rijkaard, Michael Laudrup, Eric Cantona and Xavi.
Ajax and Barcelona are among the clubs that have developed youthacademies based on Cruyff's coaching methods. His coaching philosophy helped lay the foundations for the revival of Ajax's international successes in the 1990s. Spanish football's successes at both club and international level during the years 2008 to 2012 have been cited by many as evidence of Cruyff's impact on contemporary football. France Football ranked him at No. 4 on their list of the Top 50 football managers of all time.
Hendrik Johannes Johan Cruijff was born on 25 April 1947 in Amsterdam, on a street five minutes away from Ajax's stadium, his first football club. Johan was the second son of Hermanus Cornelis Cruijff and Petronella Bernarda Draaijer, from a humble, working-class background in east Amsterdam. Cruyff, encouraged by his influential football-loving father and his close proximity in Akkerstraat to the De Meer Stadium, played football with his schoolmates and older brother, Henny, whenever he could, and idolised the prolific Dutch dribbler, Faas Wilkes.
In 1959, Cruyff's father died from a heart attack. His father's death had a major impact on his mentality. As Cruyff recalled, in celebration of his 50th birthday, My father died when I was just 12 and he was 45. From that day the feeling crept stronger over me that I would die at the same age and, when I had serious heart problems when I reached 45, I thought: 'This is it.' Only medical science, which was not available to help my father, kept me alive.
Johan Cruyff, Dutch National Team
Viewing a potential football career as a way of paying tribute to his father, the death inspired the strong-willed Cruyff, who also frequently visited the burial site at Oosterbegraafplaats.
His mother began working at Ajax as a cleaner, deciding that she could no longer carry on at the grocer without her husband, and in the future, this made Cruyff near-obsessed with financial security but also gave him an appreciation for player aids. His mother soon met her second husband, Henk Angel, a field hand at Ajax who proved a key influence in Cruyff's life.
Cruyff joined the Ajax youth system on his tenth birthday. Cruyff and his friends would frequent a playground in their neighbourhood and Ajax youth coach Jany van der Veen, who lived close by, noticed Cruyff's talent and decided to offer him a place at Ajax without a formal trial.
In total that season, Cruyff scored 25 goals in 23 games, and Ajax won the league championship. In the 1966–67 season, Ajax again won the league championship, and also won the KNVB Cup, for Cruyff's first double. Cruyff ended the season as the leading goalscorer in the Eredivisie with 33. Cruyff won the league for the third successive year in the 1967–68 season. He was also named Dutch footballer of the year for the second successive time, a feat he repeated in 1969. On 28 May 1969, Cruyff played in his first European Cup final against Milan.
In the 1969–70 season, Cruyff won his second league and cup double; at the beginning of the 1970–71 season, he suffered a groin injury. Cruyff wore number 14, even with the Dutch national team.
On 2 June 1971, in London, Ajax won the European Cup by defeating Panathinaikos 2–0. He signed a seven-year contract at Ajax. At the end of the season, he was named the Dutch and European Footballer of the Year for 1971.
In 1972, Ajax won a second European Cup, beating Inter Milan 2–0 in the final, with Cruyff scoring both goals. This victory prompted Dutch newspapers to announce the demise of the Italian style of defensive football in the face of Total Football.
Ajax won the Intercontinental Cup, beating Argentina's Independiente 1–1 in the first game followed by 3–0, and then in January 1973, they won the European Super Cup by beating Rangers 3–1 away and 3–2 in Amsterdam.
Johan Cruyff, FC Barcelona
In mid-1973, Cruyff was sold to Barcelona for US$2 million in a world record transfer fee. On 19 August 1973, he played his last match for Ajax where they defeated FC Amsterdam 6–1, the second match of the 1973–74 season.
Cruyff endeared himself to the Barcelona fans when he chose a Catalan name, Jordi, for his son. He helped the club win La Liga for the first time since 1960, defeating their deadliest rivals Real Madrid 5–0 at their home of the Santiago Bernabéu.
Thousands of Barcelona fans who watched the match on television poured out of their homes to join in street celebrations. A New York Times journalist wrote that Cruyff had done more for the spirit of the Catalan people in 90 minutes than many politicians in years of struggle.
Football historian Jimmy Burns stated, with Cruyff, the team felt they couldn't lose. He gave them speed, flexibility and a sense of themselves. In 1974 Cruyff was crowned European Footballer of the Year.
During his time at Barcelona, Cruyff scored one of his most famous goals, The Phantom Goal. In a game against Atlético Madrid, Cruyff leapt into the air, twisted his body so he was facing away from the goal, and kicked the ball past Miguel Reina in the Atlético goal with his right heel, the ball was at about neck height and had already travelled wide of the far post.
At the age of 32, Cruyff signed a lucrative deal with the Los Angeles Aztecs of the North American Soccer League (NASL).
After his spell in the U.S. and a short-lived stay in Spain, Cruyff returned to play in his homeland, rejoining Ajax on 30 November 1980 as technical advisor to trainer Leo Beenhakker.
At the end of the 1982–83 season, Ajax decided not to offer Cruyff a new contract. This angered Cruyff, who responded by signing for Ajax's archrivals Feyenoord. Cruyff's season at Feyenoord was a successful one in which the club won the Eredivisie for the first time in a decade, part of a league and KNVB Cup double.
Johan's Homage, Camp Nou, Barcelona
As a Dutch international, Cruyff played 48 matches, scoring 33 goals. The national team never lost a match in which Cruyff scored. On 7 September 1966, he made his official debut for the Netherlands in the UEFA Euro 1968 qualifier against Hungary, scoring in the 2–2 draw. In his second match, a friendly against Czechoslovakia, Cruyff was the first Dutch international to receive a red card. The Royal Dutch Football Association (KNVB) banned him from Ajax games but not internationals.
Cruyff led the Netherlands to a runners-up medal in the 1974 World Cup and was named player of the tournament. Cruyff retired from international football in October 1977, having helped the national team qualify for the upcoming World Cup.
After retiring from playing, Cruyff followed in the footsteps of his mentor Rinus Michels, coaching a young Ajax side to victory in the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1987 (1–0). In May and June 1985, Cruyff returned to Ajax again.
After having appeared for the club as a player, Cruyff returned to Barcelona for the 1988–89 season, this time to take up his new role as coach of the first team. Before returning to Barcelona, however, Cruyff had already built up plenty of experience as a coach/manager.
With Cruyff, Barça experienced a glorious era. In the space of five years (1989–1994), he led the club to four European finals, two European Cup Winners' Cup finals and two European Cup/UEFA Champions League finals. Cruyff's track record includes one European Cup, four Liga championships, one Cup Winners' Cup, one Copa del Rey and four Supercopa de España.
Under Cruyff, Barça's Dream Team won four La Liga titles in a row (1991–1994), and beat Sampdoria in both the 1989 European Cup Winners' Cup final and the 1992 European Cup final at Wembley Stadium.
The legacy that Cruyff gave Barcelona, however, was about more than just trophies and records, as he gave Barça a winning mentality and footballingidentity/ideology that runs through the club till this day.
With 11 trophies, Cruyff was Barcelona's most successful manager, but has since been surpassed by his former player Pep Guardiola, who achieved 15.
Later in his reign as Barcelona manager, Cruyff suffered a heart attack and was advised to quit coaching by his doctors. He left in 1996, and never took another top job, but his influence did not end there. It was his first managing job for 13 years.
As well as representing Catalonia on the pitch in 1976, Cruyff also managed the Catalonia national team from 2009 to 2013, leading the team to a victory over Argentina in his debut match.
Johan Cruyff, Catalan National Team
Throughout his career, Cruyff became synonymous with the playing style of TotalFootball. It is a system where a player who moves out of his position is replaced by another from his team, thus allowing the team to retain their intended organizational structure. In this fluid system, no footballer is fixed in their intended outfield role. The style was honed by Ajax coach Rinus Michels, with Cruyff serving as the on-field conductor.
Cruyff was known for his technical ability, speed, acceleration, dribbling and vision, possessing an awareness of his teammates' positions as an attack unfolded. Despite his relatively unimpressive stature and strength, Cruyff'stactical brain and reading of the game were exceptional. Football consists of different elements: technique, tactics and stamina, he told.
Cruyff always considered aesthetic and moral aspects of the game; it is not just about winning, but about winning with right style/way. He also always spoke highly of entertaining value of the game. The beautiful game, for him, is about as much the entertainment and joy as the results. In thinking of Cruyff, the victory is truly meaningful when it can fully capture the minds and hearts of competitors and spectators.
In his autobiography, Cruyff explained why he made a set of 14 basic rules, which are displayed at every Cruyff Court in the world.
Cruyff is widely seen as an iconic and revolutionary figure in history of Ajax, Barça, and the Oranje.
Cruyff was also well known for his vocal criticism and uncompromising attitude. A perfectionist, he always had a strong opinion about things and was even loyal to his principles more than any thing else in the football world.
Cruyff once described himself as not religious. Cruyff is also said to have had an attachment to Jewish culture, having grown up in the Amsterdam municipal Betondorp populated by a sizeable Jewish community, and more prevalently because of his lifelong connections with Ajax Amsterdam -a football club with such strong Dutch Jewish influences that some have even dubbed it a Jewish club.
Cruyff's death shocked the football world. Within a week after his death, there were numerous individuals, including players and managers, and organizations, including clubs, paying tribute to him, especially via social media. Thousands of Barcelona fans passed through the memorial to Cruyff, opened inside the CampNou stadium, to pay tribute.
Today, The Grandma has studied a new lesson of her IntermediateLanguagePractice manual (Chapter34).
The weather in Barcelona is too hot and the levels of humidity are increasing day by day. The Grandma has decided to visit the Maternitat Park, a beautiful park near her home, searching shadow and air enough to avoid this terrible weather. This park is in front of the Camp Nou, the stadium of Futbol Club Barcelona, and The Grandma has taken advantage to homage and remember its founder Hans Gamper, aka Joan Gamper, one of the most complete athletes at the beginning of the 20th century who died on a day like today eighty-eight years ago.
Hans Max Gamper-Haessig (22 November 1877-30 July 1930), known as Joan Gamper was a Swiss football pioneer, versatile athlete and club president. He foundedFC Zürich and FC Barcelonafootball clubs.
Hans Max Gamper-Haessig
Hans-Max Gamper was born in Winterthur, Switzerland. He was the eldest son and third of five children born to August Gamper and Rosine Emma Haessig. His mother died of tuberculosis when he was eight and the family moved to Zurich. He became a citizen of the city and in his later youth started to learn his craft as a tradesman in an apprenticeship at the silk trade house Grieder at the centrally located Paradeplatz.
As a youngster, Gamper was a keen cyclist and runner. Throughout his life he was a lover of all sports and, apart from football, he also played rugby union, tennis and golf. In Switzerland, he was highly regarded as a footballer. His first football club was Excelsior Zurich which was playing in the same colours, red and blue, as later FC Barcelona.
After some members of Excelsior split off to form FC Turicum Zurich, they reunited with Excelsior in 1896 to form FC Zurich. Gamper was a co-founder and the first captain of the clubs history.
In the early years of football in Switzerland, it was allowed to play for an indefinite number of teams from other cities as a guest player in friendly games, Gamper is known to have played among others two games for FC Winterthur and FC Basel.
Joan Gamper
Hans Gamper representing FC Zurich, founded as a polideportivo, was in 1898 holder of the Swiss records over the 800m and 1600m track distances.
He also organised the first international athletics competition in Zurich during autumn of the same year. Today, this event is one of the most renowned international athletics events worldwide, the Weltklasse Zurich, organised by FC Zurich spin-off LC Zurich.
In 1897, work took him temporarily to Lyon in France, where he played rugby for Athletique Union. The other names they called him, all came from the difficulty the Catalan people had, pronouncing the German H and G: Hans became Kans, Gamper became Kamper. But he is most known as Johannes, becoming Joan Gamper.
In 1899, he went to Barcelona to visit his uncle, Emili Gaissert, who was living there. He was on his way to Africa to help set up some sugar trading companies but fell in love with the Catalan city and decided to stay put. He would later become a fluent Catalan speaker and adopt the Catalan version of his name, Joan Gamper.
Joan Gamper and F.C.Barcelona team in 1910
As an accountant, he found work with Crédit Lyonnais, the Sarrià Railway Company and as a sports columnist, he worked for two Swiss newspapers.
He joined the local Swiss Evangelical Church and began playing football within the famous local Christian Protestant community in the district of Sarrià-Sant Gervasi. He also attended the Gimnasio Solé and helped publish a magazine, Los Deportes.
On 22 October 1899Gamper placed an advert in Los Deportes declaring his wish to form a football club. A positive response resulted in a meeting at the Gimnasio Solé on 29 November and Football Club Barcelona was born. The founders included a collection of Swiss, British, Catalan and Spanish enthusiasts.
It is not known, if Gamper chose the legendary club colours, blaugrana, after FC Basel or FC Excelsior Zürich. However, the other Swiss teams Gamper played for, and Merchant Taylors' School in Crosby, Merseyside have all been credited and/or claimed to be the inspiration. Although Gamper was the driving force behind the club, initially he chose only to be a board member and club captain. He was still only 22 and wanted to concentrate on playing the game he loved. He played 48 games for FC Barcelona between 1899 and 1903, scoring over 100 goals. His team mates included Arthur Witty.
Joan Gamper with his footballers
In 1900-01 he was a member of the FC Barcelona team that won the clubs first trophy, the Copa Macaya. This competition is now recognised as the first Catalan championship.
In 1902 he played in the very first Copa del Rey final. Barça lost 2-1 to Club Vizcaya.
In 1908 Joan Gamper became president of FC Barcelona for the first time. Gamper took over the presidency as the club was on the verge of folding. Several of the club's better players had retired and had not been replaced. This soon began to affect the club's performances both on and off the field.
The club had not won anything since the Campionat de Catalunya of 1905 and its finances suffered as a result. He was subsequently club president on five separate occasions (1908-09, 1910-13, 1917-19, 1921-23 and 1924-25) and spent 25 years at the helm. One of his main achievements was to help Barça acquire their own stadium.
Until 1909 the team played at various grounds, none of them owned by the club. Gamper raised funds from local businesses and on 14 March 1909, they moved into the Carrer Indústria, a stadium with a capacity of 6,000. He also launched a campaign to recruit more club members and by 1922 the club had over 10,000. This led to the club moving again, this time to Les Corts. This stadium had an initial capacity of 20,000, later expanded to an impressive 60,000.
Joan Gamper with Paulino Alcántara
Gamper also recruited the legendary player Paulino Alcántara, the club's second all-time top-scorer, and in 1917 appointed Jack Greenwell as manager. This saw the club's fortunes begin to improve on the field. During the Gamper era FC Barcelona won eleven Championat de Catalunya, six Copa del Rey and four Coupe de Pyrenées and enjoyed its first golden age. As well as Alcántara the Barça team under Greenwell also included Sagibarba, Ricardo Zamora, Josep Samitier, Félix Sesúmaga and Franz Platko.
His final presidency ended in controversial circumstances and personal tragedy. On 24 June 1925, FC Barcelona fans jeered the Spanish national anthem and then applauded God Save the Queen performed by a visiting British Royal Marine band.The dictatorship of Primo de Rivera accused Gamper of promoting Catalan nationalism. Les Corts was closed for six months. Gamper committed suicide after a period of depression brought on by personal and money problems and was laid to rest on the Cemetery of Montjuïc.
In 1966 the FC Barcelona president, Enric Llaudet, created the Joan GamperTrophy in his honour. This is a pre-season tournament featuring international teams as guests and is traditionally used by the club to unveil the team for the forthcoming season.
Barça's stadium was closed by dictatorship
The club also permanently retired his club membership number and the city named a street, Carrer de Joan Gamper in Les Corts district, after him. In 2016 also in Zurich a small street in a central location of the city already named Gamperstrasse has been dedicated to him.
In 2002 FC Barcelona marked the 125th anniversary of his birth. Perhaps this and the fact that the club developed into a polideportivo, the very personification of Gamper, is the most fitting tribute to this all-round sportsman.
Today Barcelona is more than just a football club. It promotes amateur track and field sports and has rugby union and cycling teams. All of these were sports played by Gamper. Barça also has professional basketball, handball and roller hockey teams as well as amateur indoor football, women's football, volleyball, baseball and field hockey teams. Over the years they have even had an ice hockey team.
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