Soccer in Spain

Soccer, football, called Fútbol in Spanish, is certainly like a religion. To be more precise, soccer is religion in Spain, because such is the devotion expressed by the Spanish to their beloved sport. Soccer is the most participated and spectator sport. Also, Spanish soccer fans are said to be the most dedicated and fervent in Europe and the fanaticism for the sport can be matched with the Italians. Spain is one of the countries, which has a great history of soccer and the other countries, that compete with Spain in terms of soccer heritage are England and Italy. The football club Real Madrid C.F is known as the most successful soccer team in Europe. The importance of soccer in Spain can be judged from the fact, that once upon a time, an essential Sunday activity was going to the church in the morning, however, now it is watching the Sunday night soccer fixtures.

History of Soccer in Spain

The origin of soccer is said to be in Western Europe. However, the exact place of its origin is disputed. England, France and Spain are the strong contenders. The honor of organizing the first Football Association, the first Football National team and the first set of common rules for the game of soccer all goes to England.

Taking inspiration from the English, Spain formed their own soccer organization in 1909 and was named as Royal Spanish Football Federation. The preparation for the La Liga started in 1927, although the tournament was played in 1928. In the beginning, there were 10 teams, which were picked to play in the tournament. Most of them were former winners of the Copa del Rey, the Spanish cup, that outdates the La Liga in Spain. The clubs who went onto write the history of Spanish soccer were FC Barcelona, Real Madrid, Arenas Club de Getxo, Real Union, Real Sociedad, Athletic Bilbao, Atletico Aviacion (Atletico Madrid), RCD Espanyol, CE Europa and Racing Santander. Although the last four have never owned the Spanish cup, they were runner ups, therefore, they were granted place in the newly formed league.

Facts about Soccer in Spain

Every town in Spain is known to have a football ground and team as well. Indoor football is played in various sports centers throughout the country. It is often said, that Spanish children learn to play football almost as soon as they learn to walk. Therefore, it is not uncommon, that the most promising players are picked up by the major clubs and coached from an early age.

Soccer is the national sport of Spain. Real Madrid and FC Barcelona are the two most famous teams, that have fans not only in Spain, but all over the world. As a matter of fact, Madrid alone is home to three major soccer teams and they are Real Madrid, Atletico de Madrid, and Rayo Vallecano. Real Madrid is one of the best football clubs of the 20th century and they play at the famous Santiago Bernabéu stadium, which is located near the Paseo de Castellana and was built in 1947. This stadium is able to host 75000 spectators. There are numerous soccer players whose names have appeared in the football rankings that have been a part of the world famous La Liga. Some of the players to have played include, Diego Maradona, Cristiano Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, Lionel Andrés Messi, Zinedine Zidane, Carlos Tevez, David Beckham to name a few.

Although, the national soccer team has constantly failed, the Spain soccer clubs have had more success on the international stage. Though soccer is not really ornamented with glorious record, it is yet treated with respect for being one of the oldest members of the world sports platform.