Real Madrid C.F.

Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (Spanish pronunciation: [reˈal maˈðɾið ˈkluβ ðe ˈfuðβol]; Royal Madrid Football Club), commonly known as Real Madrid, is a professional football club based in Madrid, Spain.
Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, has traditionally worn a white home kit since. The word Real is Spanish for royal and was bestowed to the club by King Alfonso XIII in 1920 together with the royal crown in the emblem. The team has played its home matches in the 85,454-capacity Santiago Bernabéu Stadium in downtown Madrid since 1947. Unlike most European football clubs, Real Madrid's members (socios) have owned and operated the club since its inception.
The club is the world's richest football club in terms of revenue, with an annual turnover of €513million and the most valuable, worth €3.3billion.^[5][6] It is one of three clubs to have never been relegated from the top flight of Spanish football, along with Athletic Bilbao and Barcelona. Real Madrid holds many long-standing rivalries, most notably El Clásico with FC Barcelona.
The club established itself as a major force in both Spanish and European football during the 1950s. Domestically, Real Madrid has won a record 32 La Liga titles, 18 Copas del Rey, 9 Supercopas de España, 1 Copa Eva Duarte and 1 Copa de la Liga.^[7] Internationally it has won a record nine European Cup/UEFA Champions League titles and a joint record three Intercontinental Cups, as well as two UEFA Cups, and one UEFA Super Cup.

Full name	Real Madrid Club de Fútbol[1]
Nickname(s)	Los Blancos (The Whites) Los Merengues (The Meringues) Los Vikingos (The Vikings)[2]
Founded	6 March 1902 (111 years ago) as Madrid Football Club[3]
Ground	Estadio Santiago Bernabéu, Madrid (capacity: 85,454[4])
President	Florentino Pérez
Manager	Vacant
League	La Liga
	Early years (1897–1945)  Real Madrid team in 1905 Real Madrid s origins go back to when football was introduced to Madrid by the academics and students of the Institución libre de enseñanza, which included several Cambridge and Oxford University graduates. They founded Football Club Sky in 1897, playing on Sunday mornings at Moncloa. It split into two clubs in 1900: New Foot-Ball de Madrid and Club Español de Madrid.[8] On 6 March 1902, after a new Board presided by Juan Padrós had been elected, Madrid Football Club was officially founded.[3] Three years after its foundation, in 1905, Madrid FC won its first title after defeating Athletic Bilbao in the Spanish Cup final. The club became one of the founding sides of the Royal Spanish Football Federation on 4 January 1909, when club president Adolfo Meléndez signed the foundation agreement of the Spanish FA. After moving between grounds the team moved to the Campo de O'Donnell in 1912.[9] In 1920, the club's name was changed to Real Madrid after King Alfonso XIII granted the title of Real (Royal) to the club.[10]  In 1929, the first Spanish football league was founded. Real Madrid led the first league season until the last match, a loss to Athletic Bilbao, meant they finished runners-up to Barcelona.[11] Real Madrid won its first League title in the 1931–32 season. Real won the League again the following year, becoming the first side to have won the championship twice.    [12]On 14 April 1931, the arrival of the Second Spanish Republic caused the club to lose the title Real and went back to being named as Madrid Football Club. Football continued during the Second World War, and on 13 June 1943 Madrid beat Barcelona 11–1 in the second leg of a semi-final[13] of the Copa del Generalísimo, the Copa del Rey having been renamed in honour of General Franco. It has been suggested that Barcelona players were intimidated by police,[14] including by the director of state security who "allegedly told the team that some of them were only playing because of the regime's generosity in permitting them to remain in the country."[15](p26) The Barcelona chairman, Enric Piñeyro, was assaulted by Madrid fans.[16](p284) Los Galácticos (2000–2006)   In July 2000, Florentino Pérez was elected club president.[28] He vowed in his campaign to erase the club's 270 million euro debt and modernize the club's facilities. However, the primary electoral promise that propelled Pérez to victory was the signing of Luís Figo.[29] The following year, the club got its training ground rezoned and used the money to begin assembling the famous Galáctico side including players such as Zinédine Zidane, Ronaldo, Luís Figo, Roberto Carlos, Raúl, Fabio Cannavaro and David Beckham. It is debatable whether the gamble paid off, as despite a UEFA Champions League and an Intercontinental Cup (football) win in 2002, followed by the League in 2003, the club failed to win a major trophy for the next three seasons.[30] In the summer of 2003, just after capturing another La Liga title, Florentino Pérez and the board of directors refused to renew the contract of coach Vicente del Bosque and after an internal dispute forced captain Fernando Hierro to leave the club. They also ignored Claude Makélélé's request of a new contract with a better salary, in return, Makélélé asked for a transfer request, and was transferred to Chelsea.[citation needed] The few days after the capturing of the league title were surrounded with controversy. The first controversial decision came when Perez sacked winning coach Vicente del Bosque, after Real's sporting director claimed that del Bosque was not the right man for the job; they wanted someone young to shake up the team.[citation needed] The bad atmosphere continued when the Real legend and captain Fernando Hierro left the club after a disagreement with the management, as did Steve McManaman.[citation needed] However, the club toured Asia in pre-season and introduced newly signed David Beckham. Perez and his directors refused to renew Claude Makélélé's contract with a better salary, upsetting Makelele who asked for a transfer, eventually moving to Chelsea F.C..[citation needed] In the final days of the transfer window, Fernando Morientes left the club on loan to Monaco.[citation needed] Real Madrid, with newly appointed coach Carlos Queiroz, started their domestic league slowly after a hard win over Real Betis.[citation needed] The 2005–06 season began with the promise of several new signings — Julio Baptista (€20 Million), Robinho (€30 Million) and Sergio Ramos (€30 Million – Release Clause) —[citation needed] but the Portuguese coach was not able to find the right formula on the pitch as Real Madrid's poor form continued, with the team hitting rock bottom after a humiliating 0–3 loss at the hands of F.C. Barcelona in the Santiago Bernabéu.[citation needed] Luxemburgo would eventually resign and his replacement was Juan Ramón López Caro, formally the manager of Real Madrid Castilla.[citation needed] A brief return to form came to an abrupt halt after losing the first leg of the Copa del Rey quarterfinal, 6–1 to Real Zaragoza.[citation needed] Shortly after, Real Madrid were eliminated from the Champions League for a fourth successive year, this time at the hands of Arsenal. On 27 February 2006, Florentino Pérez resigned.[31] Crest The progression of Real Madrid's crest since the Club's formation in 1902. The first crest had a simple design consisting of a decorative interlacing of the three initials of the club, "MCF" for Madrid Club de Fútbol, in dark blue on a white shirt. The first change in the crest occurred in 1908 when the letters adopted a more streamlined form and appeared inside a circle.[42] The next change in the configuration of the crest did not occur until the presidency of Pedro Parages in 1920. At that time, King Alfonso XIII granted the club his royal patronage which came in the form of the title "Real Madrid", roughly translated as "Royal".[43] Thus, Alfonso's crown was added to the crest and the club styled itself Real Madrid Club de Fútbol.[42] With the dissolution of the monarchy in 1931, all the royal symbols (the crown on the crest and the title of Real) were eliminated. The crown was replaced by the dark mulberry band of the Region of Castile.[12] In 1941, two years after the end of the Civil War, the crest's "Real Corona", or "Royal Crown", was restored while the mulberry stripe of Castile was retained as well.[17] In addition, the whole crest was made full color, with gold being the most prominent, and the club was again called Real Madrid Club de Fútbol.[42] The most recent modification to the crest occurred in 2001 when the club wanted to better situate itself for the 21st century and further standardize its crest. One of the modifications made was changing the mulberry stripe to a more bluish shade.[42] Kit manufacturers and shirt sponsors Period Kit manufacturer Shirt partner 1980–1982 Adidas None 1982–1985 Zanussi 1985–1989 Hummel Parmalat 1989–1991 Reny Picot 1991–1992 Otaysa 1992–1994 Teka 1994–1998 Kelme 1998–2001 Adidas 2001–2002 Realmadrid.com* 2002–2005 Siemens mobile 2005–2006 Siemens 2006–2007 Benq Siemens 2007–2011 bwin 2011–2013 2013–2018 Fly Emirates   Statistics and records   Raúl holds the record for most Real Madrid appearances, having played 741 first-team matches from 1994 to 2010. Manuel Sanchis, Jr. comes second, having played 711 times.[67] The record for a goalkeeper is held by Iker Casillas, with 630 appearances. With 139 caps (all at the club), he's also Real's most capped international player. While with 127 caps (47 while at the club), Luís Figo of Portugal is Real's most capped international Non-Spanish player.[68] Raúl is Real's all-time top goalscorer, with 323 goals in 741 games (1994–2010).[69] Four other players have also scored over 200 goals for Real: Alfredo Di Stéfano (1953–64), Santillana (1971–88), Ferenc Puskás (1958–66) and Hugo Sánchez (1985–92). Portuguese Cristiano Ronaldo holds the record for the most league goals scored in one season (46 in 2011–12). Di Stéfano's 49 goals in 58 matches was for decades the all-time highest tally in the European Cup, until it was surpassed by Raúl in 2005. The fastest goal in the history of the club (15 seconds) was scored by Brazilian Ronaldo on 3 December 2003 during a league match against Atlético Madrid.[70] Officially, the highest home attendance figure for a Real Madrid match is 83,329, which was for a football cup competition, Copa del Rey, in 2006. The current legal capacity of Estadio Santiago Bernabéu is 80,354.[71] The club's average attendance in 2007–08 season was 76,234, the highest in European Leagues.[72] Real has also set records in Spanish football, most notably the most domestic titles (31 as of 2007–08) and the most seasons won in a row (5, during 1960–65 and 1985–90).[73] With 121 matches (from 17 February 1957 to 7 March 1965), the club holds the record for longest unbeaten run at home in La Liga.[74] The Whites also hold the record for winning the European Cup/UEFA Champions League nine times[75] and for the most semi-final appearances (22). Raúl González is as of December 2011 the all-time UEFA Champions League top scorer, with 71 goals in total, 66 whilst playing for Real Madrid. The team has the record number of consecutive participations in the European Cup (before it became the Champions League) with 15, from 1955–56 to 1969–70.[76] In June 2009, the club broke its own record for the highest transfer fee ever paid in the history of football by agreeing to pay Manchester United €96 million (US$131.5 million, £80 million) for the services of Cristiano Ronaldo.[77][78] The fee of €76 million (over $100 million, £45.8 million) for Zinedine Zidane's transfer from Juventus to Real Madrid in 2001 was the previous highest transfer fee ever paid. This record had been broken previously in June 2009, for a few days, when Real Madrid agreed to buy Kaká from A.C. Milan. The club's record sale came on 1 September 2008, when they sold Robinho to Manchester City for €42 million (£32.5 million).[79] El Clásico    here is often a fierce rivalry between the two strongest teams in a national league, and this is particularly the case in La Liga, where the game between Real Madrid and Barcelona is known as 'The Classic' (El Clásico). From the start of national competitions the clubs were seen as representatives of two rival regions in Spain: Catalonia and Castile, as well as of the two cities. The rivalry reflects what many regard as the political and cultural tensions felt between Catalans and the Castilians, seen by one author as a re-enactment of the Spanish Civil War.[83] Over the years, the record from Real Madrid and Barcelona is 81 victories for Madrid, 76 victories for Barcelona, and 39 ties.[84] During the dictatorships of Primo de Rivera and especially of Francisco Franco (1939–1975), all regional cultures were suppressed. All of the languages spoken in Spanish territory, except Spanish (Castilian) itself, were officially banned.[85][86] Symbolising the Catalan people's desire for freedom, Barcelona became 'More than a club' (Més que un club) for the Catalans. According to Manuel Vázquez Montalbán, the best way for the Catalans to demonstrate their identity was by joining Barcelona. It was less risky than joining a clandestine anti-Franco movement, and allowed them to express their dissidence.[87] On the other hand, Real Madrid was widely seen as the embodiment of the sovereign oppressive centralism and the fascist regime at management level and beyond (Santiago Bernabéu, the former club president for whom the Merengues stadium is named, fought with los nacionales).[88][89] However, during the Spanish Civil War, members of both clubs such as Josep Sunyol and Rafael Sánchez Guerra suffered at the hands of Franco supporters. During the 1950s the rivalry was exacerbated further when there was a controversy surrounding the transfer of Alfredo Di Stéfano, who finally played for Real Madrid and was key to their subsequent success.[90] The 1960s saw the rivalry reach the European stage when they met twice at the knock-out rounds of the European Cup.[91] In 2002, the European encounter between the clubs was dubbed the "Match of The Century" by Spanish media, and was watched by more than 500 million people.[92]   Real Madrid squad 2013–14 No. Position Player 1 GK Iker Casillas (captain) 2 DF Raphaël Varane 3 DF Pepe 4 DF Sergio Ramos  (vice-captain) 5 DF Fábio Coentrão 6 MF Sami Khedira 7 FW Cristiano Ronaldo 8 MF Kaká 9 FW Karim Benzema 10 MF Mesut Özil 12 DF Marcelo  13 GK Antonio Adán No. Position Player 14 MF Xabi Alonso 17 DF Álvaro Arbeloa 18 DF Raúl Albiol 19 MF Luka Modrić 20 FW Gonzalo Higuaín (vice-captain) 21 MF José Callejón 22 MF Ángel di María 25 GK Diego López 27 DF Nacho Fernández 29 FW Álvaro Morata DF Daniel Carvajal MF Casemiro Previous manager: José Mourinho Management See also: List of Real Madrid C.F. presidents Spanish businessman Florentino Pérez is the current president of the club. Position Staff President Florentino Pérez Honorary Life President Alfredo Di Stéfano 1st Vice-president Fernando Fernández Tapias 2nd Vice-president Eduardo Fernández de Blas Secretary of the Board Enrique Sánchez González Director General José Ángel Sánchez Domestic competitions La Liga[122] Winners (32): 1931–32, 1932–33, 1953–54, 1954–55, 1956–57, 1957–58, 1960–61, 1961–62, 1962–63, 1963–64, 1964–65, 1966–67, 1967–68, 1968–69, 1971–72, 1974–75, 1975–76, 1977–78, 1978–79, 1979–80, 1985–86, 1986–87, 1987–88, 1988–89, 1989–90, 1994–95, 1996–97, 2000–01, 2002–03, 2006–07, 2007–08, 2011–12 Runners-up (21): 1929, 1933–34, 1934–35, 1935–36, 1941–42, 1944–45, 1958–59, 1959–60, 1965–66, 1980–81, 1982–83, 1983–84, 1991–92, 1992–93, 1998–99, 2004–05, 2005–06, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2012–13 Copa del Rey[123] Winners (18): 1905, 1906, 1907, 1908, 1917, 1934, 1936, 1946, 1947, 1961–62, 1969–70, 1973–74, 1974–75, 1979–80, 1981–82, 1988–89, 1992–93, 2010–11 Runners-up (20): 1903, 1916, 1918, 1924, 1929, 1930, 1933, 1940, 1943, 1958, 1959–60, 1960–61, 1967–1968, 1978–79, 1982–83, 1989–90, 1991–92, 2001–02, 2003–04, 2012–13 Supercopa de España[124] Winners (9): 1988, 1989*, 1990, 1993, 1997, 2001, 2003, 2008, 2012 Runners-up (4): 1982, 1995, 2007, 2011 (* Won Copa del Rey and La Liga) Copa Eva Duarte (Predecessor to the Supercopa de España)[125] Winners (1): 1947 Copa de la Liga[126] Winners (1): 1984–1985 Runners-up (1): 1982–1983 European competitions File:Las copas de europa!.jpg Real Madrid's nine European cups European Cup/UEFA Champions League[127] Winners (9): 1955–56*, 1956–57, 1957–58, 1958–59, 1959–60, 1965–66, 1997–98, 1999–2000, 2001–02 Runners-up (3): 1961–62, 1963–64, 1980–81 (* First ever winners) UEFA Cup[128] Winners (2): 1984–85, 1985–86 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup[129] Runners-up (2): 1970–71, 1982–83 UEFA Super Cup[130] Winners (1): 2002 Runners-up (2): 1998, 2000 Worldwide competitions Intercontinental Cup[131] Winners (3): 1960*, 1998, 2002 Runners-up (2): 1966, 2000 (* First ever winners) BY: http://www.facebook.com/rafiindi.fauzan