Supporters of FC Barcelona

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Supporters of FC Barcelona are known as culers. In Spain, about 25% of the population are said to be Barça sympathisers.[1] FC Barcelona also has large support abroad, especially in the United States, Latin America, the Netherlands, Morocco, and Japan. Since the 2003/04 season, the club's membership figures have seen a significant increase. In June 2007, the number of club members, or socios in Spanish, surpassed 156,000.[2] In addition to this, there are about 1,352 (as of November 2006) officially registered FC Barcelona penyes around the world.[3] The current president of the Spanish government, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, is one of the club's most prominent supporters.

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[edit] Culers

Until 1909, the team played in various stadiums, none of them owned by the club. On March 14, 1909, the 6,000 seat stadium of Carrer Indústria opened its doors. This was the first ground owned by the club. In 1922, the club moved to Les Corts. This stadium had an initial capacity of 20,000, later expanded to an impressive 60,000. It was during these early years, in these stadiums, that Barça fans acquired their nickname, the Culers (pronounced /kuˈlɛs/). Roughly translated from Catalan, it means arse people. Far from being offensive, the name refers to fans seated in the highest row of the stadium. From outside, people who passed by could only see their arses. Barça fans have been referred to as Culers ever since. In Spanish, this word is written as culés, and sometimes it is also written like this in English.

At Anfield, Culers joined along in the chorus of "You'll Never Walk Alone", after the end of the second leg of the round of 16 match against Liverpool F.C. in the UEFA Champions League, which led to some Liverpool fans to compliment their sportsmanship. Barça and Liverpool were both rivals of Chelsea F.C.[1]

[edit] Penyes

The penyes are a combination of club supporters and action groups. The original Penya Solera, was formed in 1944 by a collection of former FC Barcelona players and supporters, including Josep Samitier. It was originally a support group to help raise funds, during a time when the club faced financial hardship. One of the most notorious Barça penyes is the Boixos Nois, which uses a bulldog as its logo. Founded in the early 1980s as a left-leaning group, nowadays it includes many nationalist skinheads. The group is known for its anti-Real Madrid sentiment and its dislike of their equivalents, the Ultras Sur. The name is a pun with boig, meaning crazy, and Can Boixeres, the name of a neighborhood near to the Stadium where the Nois (guys) used to hang out before and after matches, and not a misspelling of Bojos Nois, as it is commonly believed.

[edit] References

  1. ^ Microsoft Word - Es2705mar_A.doc
  2. ^ More than 156,000 members
  3. ^ Our Fan clubs

[edit] External links


Official supporters clubs ('PENYES FCBARCELONA')


fansites