La Liga
 |
Liga de Fútbol Profesional |
Liga de Fútbol Profesional (
LFP;
Spanish for "League of Professional Football"), commonly known as
La Liga, is the professional football league in
Spain. Nine clubs have been crowned
La Liga Champions. Since the
1950s,
Real Madrid and
FC Barcelona have dominated the competition. The former have been champions 29 times while the latter have won it on 18 occasions. However during the
1930s and
1940s and in more recent seasons,
La Liga has been more competitive. Other winners include
Atlético Madrid,
Athletic Bilbao,
Valencia CF,
Real Sociedad,
Real Betis,
Deportivo La Coruña and
Sevilla FC. Over the past decade
La Liga has been
consistently rated as the strongest league in
Europe, above the
Italian Serie A, the
German Bundesliga and the
English Premiership.
Throughout its history, it has featured some of the best players in the world.
Alfredo Di Stéfano,
Raymond Kopa,
Luis Suárez,
Johan Cruyff,
Hristo Stoichkov,
Rivaldo,
Zinedine Zidane,
Ronaldinho and
LuÃs Figo, were all elected
European Footballer of the Year while playing for
La Liga clubs. Di Stéfano and Cruyff won the award twice while in
Spain. In addition
Romario,
Ronaldo,
Rivaldo,
LuÃs Figo,
Zinedine Zidane and
Ronaldinho were all voted
FIFA World Player of the Year. Other significant players have included
Ladislao Kubala,
Ferenc Puskas,
Diego Maradona,
Gheorghe Hagi,
Michael Laudrup,
Mario Kempes and
Hugo Sánchez.
The last five FIFA World Player of the Year awards have all been won by players playing in La Liga. (2001: Luis Figo, 2002: Ronaldo, 2003: Zinedine Zidane, 2004: Ronaldinho and 2005: Ronaldinho.
Current star players in
La Liga include
Samuel Eto'o,
Raúl,
David Beckham,
Pablo Aimar,
Juan Roman Riquelme,
JoaquÃn,
Xavi,
Deco,
David Villa,
Vicente,
Leo Messi,
Ronaldinho,
Ronaldo,
Robinho,
Maxi RodrÃguez,
Fernando Torres,
Sergio Aguero. La Liga also includes world-class defensive players like
Carles Puyol,
Rafael Marquez,
Lillian Thuram,
Roberto Ayala,
Fabio Cannavaro,
Gianluca Zambrotta,
Roberto Carlos and
Emerson.
The 2005â€"06 average attendance of 29,029 for league matches is the sixth highest of any domestic professional sports league in the world. In professional football leagues La Liga was third highest behind Germany's
Bundesliga and England's
Premier League.[
1]
The La Liga is currently first in the
UEFA rankings of European leagues based on their performances in European competitions over a five year period, ahead of Italy's
Serie A in second and England's
Premier League in third.[
2]
La Liga currently takes place between the months of September and June. The term
La Liga is regularly used to refer to just the
Primera División (First division) on its own. However it has always featured a
Segunda División, currently designated
Segunda División A. The lower leagues,
Segunda División B and
Tercera División are amateur and regionalised. Teams from
La Liga also compete in the
Copa del Rey.
The top four placed
Primera División teams qualify for the
UEFA Champions League. The winner of
La Liga also plays off against the
Copa del Rey winner for the
Supercopa de España. The fifth and sixth placed teams qualify for the
UEFA Cup. A third
UEFA Cup placed is awarded to the
Copa del Rey winners or the seventh placed
Primera Division team. All the teams have the right to request an invite to enter the
UEFA Intertoto Cup. The three last placed teams are relegated to the
Segunda Division A.
Foundation
In April
1927 Jose Maria Acha, a director at
Arenas Club de Getxo, first proposed the idea of a national league in
Spain. After much debate about the size of the league and who would take part, the
Real Federación Española de Fútbol eventually agreed on the ten teams who would form the first
Primera Division in
1928.
FC Barcelona,
Real Madrid,
Athletic Bilbao,
Real Sociedad,
Arenas Club de Getxo and
Real Unión were all selected as previous winners of the
Copa del Rey.
Athletic Madrid,
RCD Español and
CE Europa qualified as
Copa del Rey runners-up and
Racing Santander qualified through a knockout competition. Only three of the founding clubs,
Real Madrid,
FC Barcelona and
Athletic Bilbao, have never been relegated from the
Primera Division.
The 1930s
Although
FC Barcelona won the very first
La Liga and
Madrid CF won their first titles in
1932 and
1933, it was
Athletic Bilbao that set the early pace winning
La Liga in
1930,
1931,
1934 and
1936. They were also runners-up in
1932 and
1933. In
1935 Betis Balompie won their only title to date.
La Liga was suspended during the
Spanish Civil War, but clubs in the Republican area of Spain, with the notable exception of the two
Madrid clubs, competed in
La Liga del Mediterráneo.
FC Barcelona emerged as champions in
1937.
The 1940s
When
La Liga resumed in the
1940s it was
Atlético Aviación,
Valencia CF and
Sevilla CF that initially emerged as the strongest clubs.
Atlético Aviación were only awarded a place the 1939/40
Primera Division as a replacement for
Real Oviedo, whose ground had been damaged during the war. The club subsequently won their first
La Liga title and retained it in
1941. While other clubs lost players to exile, execution and as casualties of the war, the
Atlético Aviación team was reinforced by a merger. The young pre-war squad of
Valencia CF had also remained intact and in the post-war years matured into champions, gaining three
La Liga titles in
1942,
1944 and
1947. They were also runners-up in
1948 and
1949.
Sevilla CF also enjoyed a brief golden era, finishing as runners-up in
1940 and
1942 before winning their only title to date in
1946. By the latter part of the decade
CF Barcelona began to emerge as a force and they were crowned
La Liga champions in
1945,
1948 and
1949.
Di Stefano, Puskás, Kubala and Suárez
Although
Atlético Madrid, previously known as
Atlético Aviación, were champions in
1950 and
1951, the
1950s saw the beginning of the
CF Barcelona/
Real Madrid dominance. During the
1930s,
1940s and
1950s there were strict limits imposed on foreign players. In most cases clubs could only have three foreign players in its squad, meaning that at least eight local players had to play in every game. During the
1950s, however, these rules were circumnavigated by
Real Madrid and
CF Barcelona who naturalised
Alfredo Di Stefano,
Ferenc Puskás ,
José Santamaria and
Ladislao Kubala. Inspired by Kubala, Barca won the title in
1952 and
1953. Di Stefano, Puskás and
Raymond Kopa formed the nucleus of the
Real Madrid team that dominated the second half of the
1950s . Real won
La Liga for first time as
Real Madrid in
1954 and retained it in
1955. They were winners again in
1957 and
1958, with only
Atlético Bilbao interrupting their sequence.
CF Barcelona with a team coached by
Helenio Herrera and featuring
Luis Suárez gained the title in
1959 and
1960.
La Liga Clubs in Europe
Meanwhile
La Liga teams found success in European competition.
Alfredo Di Stéfano and friends also worked their magic in the
European Cup and
Real Madrid won the cup five times in a row between
1956 and
1960 and then for a sixth time in
1966.
La Liga clubs also dominated the
Fairs Cup.
CF Barcelona,
Valencia CF and
Real Zaragoza won this competition six times between them between
1958 and
1966, resulting in three all-
La Liga finals in
1962,
1964 and
1966.
La Liga clubs have continued to be successful in Europe ever since.
Real Madrid have been crowned champions of Europe on 9 separate occasions.
La Liga clubs have won 32 major European trophies between them.
Real Madrid have won 12 titles in total while
FC Barcelona have won 10.
Valencia CF have contributed another 6, while
Real Zaragoza with 2 and
Atlético Madrid and
Sevilla FC with 1 each complete the tally.
Deportivo La Coruna have been regulars in the
UEFA Champions League while
Athletic Bilbao,
RCD Espanyol,
CD Alaves and
RCD Mallorca have all contested major finals. Even smaller
La Liga clubs, like
Villarreal,
Celta Vigo and
Málaga CF have found success in Europe, winning the
UEFA Intertoto Cup.
The Madrid Years
Between
1961 and
1980,
Real Madrid dominated
La Liga with the club winning the competition 14 times. This included a five in a row sequence (1961-65) and two three in row sequences (1967-69 and 1978-1980). During this era only
Atlético Madrid offered Real any serious challenge, adding four more titles to their tally in
1966,
1970,
1973 and
1977. Only
Valencia CF in
1971 and the
Johan Cruyff-inspired
FC Barcelona of
1974 managed to break the
Madrid monopoly. The arrival of Cryuff in
La Liga also signalled the easing of restrictions imposed on foreign players.
The 1980s
The
Madrid winning sequence was ended more significantly in
1981 when
Real Sociedad won their first ever title. They retained it in
1982 and their two in a row was followed by another by their fellow
Basques,
Athletic Bilbao who won back to back titles in
1983 and
1984.
Terry Venables led
FC Barcelona to a solitary title in
1985 before
Real Madrid resumed normal service with another five in a row sequence (1986-90) with a team that included
Hugo Sánchez and the legendary
La Quinta del Buitre -
Emilio Butragueño ,
Manolo SanchÃs,
MartÃn Vázquez,
MÃchel and
Miguel Pardeza, guided by
Leo Beenhakker.
The 1990s "THE DREAM TEAM"
Johan Cruyff returned to
FC Barcelona as manager in
1988, and assembled the legendary
Dream Team. Cruyff introduced players like
Josep Guardiola,
José Mari Bakero,
Txiki Beguiristain,
Goikoetxea,
Ronald Koeman,
Michael Laudrup and
Hristo Stoichkov. This team won
La Liga four times between
1991 and
1994 and won the
European Cup in
1992.
Real Madrid, with Michael Laudrup in the team, ended their run in
1995 and added another title in
1997. In between
Atletico Madrid won their ninth
La Liga title. Inspired by
LuÃs Figo,
Luis Enrique and
Rivaldo,
FC Barcelona again won the title in
1998 and
1999. Meanwhile
Real Madrid also won the
UEFA Champions League, winning in
1998 and
2000.
La Liga's Dominance in Europe since 2000
Since the turn of the century, La Liga clubs have dominated Europe. In 2000, La Liga had 3 out of the 4 semi-finalists in the
UEFA Champions League with
Real Madrid,
Valencia CF and
FC Barcelona,
Real Madrid went on to beat fellow La Liga side
Valencia CF in an all Spanish final. In 2001, La Liga had 2 out of the 4 semi-finalists in the
UEFA Champions League with
Real Madrid and
Valencia CF,
Valencia CF went on to lose the final again this time to
Bayern Munich. Meanwhile, in the
UEFA Cup, La Liga had 2 out of the 4 semi-finalists with
Deportivo Alaves and
FC Barcelona, with
Deportivo Alaves losing to
Liverpool FC in the final. In 2002, had 2 out of the 4 semi-finalists in the
UEFA Champions League with
Real Madrid beating
FC Barcelona in the semi-finals then beating
Bayer Leverkusen in the final. In 2003,
Real Madrid reached the semi-finals again but this time losing against
Juventus. In 2004,
Deportivo de la Coruna reached the semi-finals of the
UEFA Champions League but lost to eventual champions
FC Porto. In the
UEFA Cup, La Liga had 2 out of the 4 semi-finalists.
Valencia CF beat
Villarreal CF in the semi-finals before beating
Olympique de Marseille to lift the
UEFA Cup. In 2006, La Liga had 2 out of the 4 semi-finalists in the
UEFA Champions League with
FC Barcelona and
Villarreal CF where
FC Barcelona went on to become European champions again by beating
Arsenal FC 2-1 in the final. Meanwhile, in the
UEFA Cup Sevilla FC followed in Barcelona's footsteps by beating a
Premier League side in an European final when they thrashed
Middlesbrough FC 4-0 and become
UEFA Cup winners.
With
FC Barcelona and
Sevilla FC, La Liga took home both European trophies on offer in 2006.
As
La Liga entered a new century, the big two found themselves facing new challengers. Between
1993 and
2004,
Deportivo La Coruña finished in the top three on ten occasions, a better record than either
Real Madrid or
FC Barcelona, and in
2000, under
Javier Irureta, they became the ninth team to be crowned champions.
Real Madrid won two more
La Liga titles in
2001 and
2003 and the
UEFA Champions League again in
2000 and
2002. They were challenged by a re-emerging
Valencia CF in both competitions. Under the management of
Héctor Cúper,
Valencia CF finished as runners-up in the
UEFA Champions League in
2000 and
2001. His successor,
Rafael BenÃtez, built on this and led the club to a
La Liga title in
2002 and a
La Liga/
UEFA Cup double in
2004. The 2004/05 season saw a resurgent
FC Barcelona, inspired by
Ronaldinho, win their first title of the new century. 2005/06 again saw Barcelona assert their dominance, winning the title with three games to spare.
In 2005/2006 La Liga further boasted their claim in having the best league in the world with
FC Barcelona winning the
UEFA Champions League and
Sevilla FC winning the
UEFA Cup. La Liga became the first league to do the "Double" (
UEFA Champions League and
UEFA Cup) since 1997, when Germany's
Borussia Dortmund won the Champions League and
Schalke 04 won the UEFA Cup.
Year By Year
valign="top" width=33%|valign="top" width=33%|valign="top" width=33%|}Performance by club*Real Madrid: 29
**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:::
*FC Barcelona: 18
**1928-29, 1944-45, 1947-48, 1948-49, 1951-52, 1952-53, 1958-59, 1959-60, 1973-74, 1984-85, 1990-91, 1991-92, 1992-93, 1993-94, 1997-98, 1998-99, 2004-05, 2005-06:::
*Atletico Madrid: 9
**1939-40, 1940-41, 1949-50, 1950-51, 1965-66, 1969-70, 1972-73, 1976-77, 1995-96:::
* Athletic Bilbao: 8
** 1929-30, 1930-31, 1933-34, 1935-36, 1942-43, 1955-56, 1982-83, 1983-84:::
*Valencia CF: 6
**1941-42, 1943-44, 1946-47, 1970-71, 2001-02, 2003-04 :::
*Real Sociedad: 2
**1980-81, 1981-82:::
*Sevilla FC:1
**1945-46 :::
*Betis Balompie:1
**1934-35:::
*Deportivo de La Coruña:1
**1999-2000During the Spanish Second Republic clubs such as Real Madrid and Real Betis dropped the Real from their name. In the 1941 a decree issued by Franco banned the use of non-Spanish language names. FC Barcelona and Sevilla FC became CF Barcelona and Sevilla CF and both Athletic Bilbao and Athletic Aviacion changed the spelling of their prefix to Atlético.Only three non-EU nationals can be on the pitch at anytime. Those with European ancestry can claim a passport from the nation their ancestors came from. e.g Edmilson claimed an Italian passport as he has Italian ancestry.
* List of football clubs in Spain
* Sports league attendances
* List of transfers of La Liga - 2005/2006 season* Official La Liga Site
* Official RFEF Site
* RFEF site
* Marca
* La Liga on Futbol.com
* As
* El Mundo Deportivo
* Sport
* Soccer Spain
* Primera Division
* 2005-2006 Spanish La Liga Final Season, Team, and Player Statistics in .PDF format - (www.worldcupadvice.com)
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