Futbol Club Barcelona, also known as FC Barcelona and Barça, is a football team based in the Catalonia region of Spain. Besides being a popular and successful team, Barça has become a symbol of Catalan nationalism, inspiring the motto “Més que un club”, or “more than a club”.

Joan Gamper, a football enthusiast from Switzerland, founded FC Barcelona on November 29, 1899. The successful team quickly amassed a dedicated Catalan fan base.

Fans of FC Barcelona are known as culés, the Catalan word for ‘ass’. This nickname originated in the twenties from Barça fans who sat in the highest row of the stadium with their culers visible to passerbys.

Under Franco, the Catalan language and symbols were banned and the team was forced to change their name to Club de Fútbol Barcelona in 1939. The Catalan flag was also removed from the club shield. Despite this, the stadium remained one of the only places during Franco’s regime where Catalan could be spoken and their flags could be displayed freely. (more…)