Supporters of FC Barcelona - History

History

Before 1909, Barcelona played in various stadia, none of which were owned by the club. On 14 March 1909, the club moved to the Camp de la Indústria which had a capacity of 6,000, it was the first ground owned by the club. Barcelona moved to Les Corts in 1922, which had an initial capacity of 20,000, which was later expanded to 60,000. The top-row of Les Corts was the origin of the nickname culé, derived from the Catalan cul (English: arse), as the spectators at the first stadium, Camp de la Indústria, sat with their culs over the stand. The English author, Phil Ball, notes that "all you could see was row upon row of bums".

In the mid-1940s, the club invented the notion of penyes, a mix between a fan club and a financial support club, during a time when the club was in need of financial and public support in face of the hostility of Francisco Franco's dictatorship. The first Penya Solera, was formed in 1944 by a group of supporters and former players. The penyes would later exhibit their financial in 1953, when they proposed the building of the Camp Nou. Inspiration was drawn from the financial plan Athletic Bilbao used to build San Mamés, were an association of penyes pledged to finance the construction. As a result, the subsequent construction of the stadium put the club into its supporters' hands, giving the penyes political influence over the club, which still lasts today.

During the same period, Franco's oppression of Catalonia caused the relationship between the club and its supporters to change. For the supporters, FC Barcelona became synonymous with Catalonia, a feeling incorporated in the club's Més que un club motto (English: More than a club). The socio-political impulse Visca el Barça (Long live Barça), gradually evolved into Visca el Barça i visca Catalunya (Long live Barça and Catalonia) and was the same as a protest-song against the central government in Madrid.

In 1975, the death of Franco marked the beginning of Spain's transition into a democracy and four years later, Josep Lluís Núñez became the first elected president of FC Barcelona. Since then, the members of Barcelona, called socios, have elected the club president.

In the early 1980s, one of the most notorious penyes, the Boixos Nois (English: 'Crazy boys') was founded. The peña who identified with left-wing separatism, repeatedly demanded the resignation of president Núñez, openly defying his presidency through chants and banners at matches. At the same time, the city of Barcelona experienced a rise in the number of skinheads, who identified with right-wing separatism. The skinheads slowly moved the Boixos Nois' political ideology from liberalism to fascism, which caused fractions within the group. Inspired by British hooligans, the remaining Boixos Nois became violent, which often lead to mass-scale arrests.

According to the protest organisation L'Elephant Blau, formed in part by later-president Joan Laporta in 1998, the former president Núñez promoted the emergence of skinheads among the Boixos and gave them permission to roam freely around the stadium, using them for his own political gain. When Núñez resigned in 2000, his vice-president Joan Gaspart took over as president. Gaspart publicly expressed his sympathies for Boixos Nois, claiming that he would join the group as soon as he resigned as chairman. The comment caused the Boixos Nois members to occasionally be referred to as 'the chairman's boys'.

The same year saw the controversial transfer of the Barcelona vice-captain Luís Figo to arch-rivals Real Madrid. When Figo returned to the Camp Nou in November 2002, the Boixos responded to Figo's perceived treachery by whistling and jeering whenever he went near the ball. The abuse peaked when the Boixos threw a cut-off pig's head next to Figo, while he was taking a corner. The match has since been known in Spain as the "Partido de la Vergüenza" (English: "the Game of Shame"). The match was suspended for 13 minutes by the referee, who took the players off the pitch because of fears for their safety. It ended in a 0–0 draw.

During the first decade of the new millennium, president Joan Laporta, a supporter of Catalonian nationalism, repeatedly expressed his support of Catalonia's secession from Spain and characterised the club as the symbol for Catalonian separatism. The politicalisation of the club drew criticism from several club members who accused Laporta of alienating Barcelona fans, both within and outside of Catalunya. By 2003 Barcelona had 1,200 penyes around the world, causing other Spanish clubs to copy the concept. With each individual peña having different names and rules, it has become a custom in Spain to name a new peña after their favourite player or match, and in turn the player usually attends to the inaugural supper.

In the presidential election of 2010, the rise in club-members during the last seven years caused the campaign to focus on whether to allow votes from non-Catalan members, through internet or post. The balloting committee decided to only allow votes from members who registered at the home stadium on the day of the election.

As of November 2010, membership of the club is no longer open to the public. Only close relatives to current and former FC Barcelona members can join the club as well as previous members with at least a two-year history of membership. This ruling however will not apply to children under the age of 15.