Next Sunday, FCBarcelona face Atlético de Madrid at Camp Nou and the winners will take the title. There are no conspiracies, no suspicion, no hidden interest, no existential angst and no second chances ruled out but just attention undivided. On Sunday afternoon, Real Madrid finally fell, not quite at the last, and now there were two, hearts racing and bodies aching. 370 games, 33,300 minutes, 1,021 goals and two more draws later – 0-0 for Barcelona at Elche and 1-1 for Atlético at home to Málaga – a single match will decide who will win the league.
The slogan “more than a club” expresses the commitment that Football Club Barcelona has maintained and still maintains beyond what belongs in the realm of sport. For many years, this commitment specifically referred to Catalan society, which for many decades of the 20th century lived under dictatorships that persecuted its language and culture. Under these circumstances, Barça always supported Catalan sentiments, and the defense of its own language and culture. It was because of this that, even though Catalan was not an official language, in 1921 the club drafted its statutes in the language of Catalonia. It was also in this era that in 1918 the club adhered to a petition for a statute of autonomy for Catalonia, which was being demanded from all sectors of the catalanista movement.
Catalan identity
Since it was founded, FC Barcelona has always been firmly rooted in its country, Catalonia, a commitment that has arisen out of Catalan society and that is understood by Barça supporters in the rest of Spain and the world. The club projects, with conviction and firmness, the image of Catalonia around the world. Barça defends the idea of a multicultural, integrating, fair and caring Catalonia. (Acc to Barcelona’s official website) .
One Comment