History of Real Madrid C.F. - Early Years

Early Years

Football was introduced to Madrid by the professors and students of the Institución Libre de Enseñanza. They included several Oxbridge graduates. In 1895 they founded the club Football Sky, playing on Sunday mornings at Moncloa. In 1900 this club split into two different clubs New Foot-Ball de Madrid and Club Español de Madrid. The president of the latter club was Julián Palacios. In 1902 the latter club split again, resulting in the formation of Sociedad Madrid FC on March 6, 1902. The first president was Juan Padrós Rubió; the first secretary was Manuel Mendía; and the first treasurer was José de Gorostizaga. Juan Padrós Rubió would be later succeeded by his brother, Carlos Padrós from Spain. In 1905, only three years after its foundation, Madrid FC already won its first major title in the Estadio Chamartín stadium. The team won the first of four consecutive Copa del Rey - titles (at that time the only statewide competition). In 1912 they moved to their first ground called 'Campo de O'Donnell' after moving between some minor grounds. In 1920 the club's name was changed into Real Madrid after King Alfonso XIII, a reputed football fan, granted the title of Real (Royal) to the club. However, when the Second Spanish Republic was proclaimed the club dropped both the word Real and the royal crown from the emblem, being known from then and until the end of the Spanish Civil War as Madrid C. F. only. The addition of the purple band to the emblem dates back to the Republican period and has remained there since then. In 1937, due to the stagnation of the ongoing civil war, all activity disappeared and the club virtually ceased to exist.