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Minggu, 22 Juli 2012

Ciudad de los Artes y las Ciencias

The Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias anglicised as "City of Arts and Sciences") is an entertainment-based cultural and architectural complex in the city of ValenciaSpain. It is the most important modern tourist destination in the city of Valencia.
The City of Arts and Sciences is situated at the end of the former riverbed of the river Turia, which was drained and rerouted after a catastrophic flood in 1957. The old riverbed was turned into a picturesque sunken park.
Designed by Santiago Calatrava and Félix Candela, the project underwent the first stages of construction in July 1996 and the finished "city" was inaugurated April 16, 1998 with the opening of L'Hemisfèric. The last great component of the City of Arts and Sciences, El Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia, was presented on October 9, 2005, Valencian Community Day.

Buildings


The complex is made up of the following buildings, in order of their inauguration:
  • L'Hemisfèric — an Imax Cinema, Planetarium and Laserium. The building is meant to resemble a giant eye, and has an approximate surface of 13,000 m². The Hemesferic also known as the planetarium or the “eye of knowledge,” is the centerpiece of the City of Arts and Sciences. It was the first building completed in 1998. Its design resembles an eyelid that opens to access the surrounding water pool. The bottom of the pool is glass, creating the illusion of the eye as a whole. This planetarium is a half-sphere composed of  concrete 110 meters long and 55.5 meters wide. The shutter is built of elongated aluminum awnings that fold upward collectively to form a brise-soleil roof that opens along the curved axis of the eye. It opens to reveal the dome, the pupil of the eye, which is the Ominax theater. The City of Arts and Sciences is divided in half by a set of stairs that descend into the vaulted concrete lobby. The underground spaces are illuminated with the use of translucent glass panels within the walking path. The transparent roof is supported by concrete arches that connect to the sunken gallery. There is a miraculas echo inside of the building and if two people stay on the two opposite pillars inside of the eye they can seamlessly speak with each other. 
  • El Museu de les Ciències Príncipe Felipe — Is an interactive museum of science that resembles the skeleton of a whale. It occupies around 40,000 m² on three floors. The hotch-potch of exhibits is designed more for 'entertainment value' than for science education. The building is much more impressive outside than inside and its meagre contents show how little thought was put into the whole project. Much of the ground floor is taken up by a basketball court sponsored by a local team and various companies. The building is made up of three floors of which 26,000 square meters is used for exhibitions. The first floor has a beautiful view of the Turia Garden that surrounds it; which is over 13,500 square meters of water. The second floor hosts “The Legacy of Science” exhibition by the researchers; Santiago Ramón y Cajal, Severo Ochoa y Jean Dausset. The third floor is known as the “Chromosome Forest” which shows the sequencing of human DNA. Also on this floor is the “Zero Gravity,” the “Space Academy,” and “Marvel Superheroes” exhibitions. The building’s architecture is known for its geometry, structure, use of materials, and its design around nature. The building is about 42,000 square meter and 26,000 square meters of is exhibition space, which is currently the largest in Spain. It has 20,000 square meters of glass, 4,000 panes, 58,000 m³ of concrete, and 14.000 tons of steel. This magnificent building stands 220 meters long, 80 meters wide and 55 meters high.

    L'Umbracle — a landscaped walk with plant species indigenous to Valencia (such as rockrose, lentisca, romero, lavender, honeysuckle, bougainvillea, palm tree). It harbors in its interior The Walk of the Sculptures, an outdoor art gallery with sculptures from contemporary artists. (Miquel from Navarre, Francesc Abbot, Yoko Ono and others). The Umbracle is a space that is a home to numerous sculptures surrounded by nature. It was designed as a entrance to the City of Arts and Sciences. It is 320 meters long and 60 meters wide, located on the southern side of the complex. It 55 fixed arches and 54 floating arches that stand 18 meters high. The plants in the garden were carefully picked to change color with the seasons. The garden consists of 99 palm trees, 78 small palm trees, 62 bitter orange trees. There are 42 varieties of shrubs from the Region of Valencia including Cistuses, Mastics, Buddleia, Pampas grass, and Plumbagos. In the garden there are 16 plants of Beauty of the Night. Honeysuckle and hanging Bougainvilea are two of the 450 climbing plants in the umbracle. It also has 5,500 carpet plants such as Lotus, Agateas, Spanish Flags, and Fig Marigolds. There are over a hundred aromatic plants including Rosemary and Lavender.

    L'Oceanogràfic
     — an open-air oceanographic park. It is the largest oceanographic aquarium in Europe with 110,000 square meters and 42 million liters of water. It was built in the shape of a water lily and is the work of architect Félix Candela. Each building represents different aquatic environments including the Mediterranean, Wetlands, Temperate and Tropical Seas, Oceans, the Antarctic, the Artcti
    c, Islands and the Ted Sea. This aquarium is a home to over 500 different species including dolphins, belugas, sawfish, jellyfish, starfish, sea urchins, walruses, sea lions, seals, penguins, turtles, sharks,and rays. It also inhabits wetland bird species. 
    El Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia — an opera house and performing arts center. It contains four large rooms: a Main Room, Magisterial Classroom, Amphitheater and Theater of Camera. It is dedicated to music and the scenic arts. It is surrounded by 87,000 square meters of landscape and water, as well as 10,000 square meters of walking area. The Palau de Les Arts has four sections; the main hall, the master hall, the auditorium, and the Martin y Soler theatre. It holds many events such as opera, theatre and music in its auditoriums. Panoramic lifts and stairways connect platforms at different heights on the inside of the metallic frames of the building. The building has an metallic feather outer roof that rests on two supports and is 230 meters long and 70 meters high. One of the supports allows for part of the building to overhang. The building is supported by white concrete. Two laminated steel shells cover the building weighing over 3,000 tons. These shells are 163 meters wide and 163 meters long.

    • El Pont de l'Assut de l'Or — a suspension bridge that connects the south side with Minorca Street, whose 125 meters high pillar is the highest point in the city.
    • L'Àgora — a covered plaza in which concerts and sporting events (such as the Valencia Open 500) are held.[1] The Agora is a space designed to hold a variety of events such as concerts, performances, exhibitions, conventions, staging of congresses, and international sports meetings. Many important events have been held in this building including the Freestyle Burn Spanish Cup in 2010 and the Christmas Special Program.
    • Torres de València — forming part of   a project of the construction of three skyscrapers of 308, 266 and 220 m. The project has been put on hold and the possibilities that it will be finished are seen by many as doubtful.

Real Madrid C.F.


Real Madrid C.F. emblemReal Madrid Club de Fútbol commonly known asReal Madrid, is a professional football club based in Madrid, Spain. It was founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club and 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 club established itself as a major force in both Spanish and European football during the 1950s.
Unlike most European football clubs, Real Madrid's members (socios) have owned and operated the club since its inception. The club is the richest football club in terms of annual revenue, generating €438.6 million in 2011and the second most valuable, worth €1.4 billion. Real Madrid holds many long-standing rivalries, most notably El Clásico with FC Barcelona. The team has played its home matches in the 85,454-capacity Santiago Bernabéu Stadium in downtown Madrid since 1947.
It is one of three clubs to have never been relegated from the top flight of Spanish football, along with Athletic Bilbao and Barcelona. Domestically, Real Madrid has won a record 32 La Liga titles, 18 Copas del Rey, 8 Supercopas de España, 1 Copa Eva Duarte and 1Copa de la Liga. Internationally it has won a record nine European Cup/UEFA Champions League titles and a joint record threeIntercontinental Cups, as well as two UEFA Cups, and one UEFA Super Cup

History

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.[7] On 6 March 1902, after a new Board presided by Juan Padrós had been elected, Madrid Football Club was officially founded. 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. In 1920, the club's name was changed to Real Madrid after King Alfonso XIII granted the title of Real (Royal) to the club.

The then King of SpainAlfonso XIII.
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. 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.
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 of theCopa del Generalísimo, the Copa del Rey having been renamed in honour of General Franco. It has been suggested that players were intimidated by police, 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." The Barcelona chairman, Enric Piñeyro, was assaulted by Madrid fans.

Santiago Bernabéu Yeste and European success (1945–1978)

Santiago Bernabéu Yeste became president of Real Madrid in 1945. Under his presidency, the club, its stadium Santiago Bernabéu and its training facilities Ciudad Deportivawere rebuilt after the Spanish Civil War damages. Beginning in 1953, he embarked upon a strategy of signing world-class players from abroad, the most prominent of them beingAlfredo Di Stéfano.
In 1955, acting upon the idea proposed by the French sports journalist and editor of L'Équipe Gabriel Hanot, Bernabéu, Bedrignan and Gusztáv Sebes created an exhibition tournament of invited teams from around Europe that would eventually become what today is known as the UEFA Champions League. It was under Bernabéu's guidance that Real Madrid established itself as a major force in both Spanish and European football. The club won the European Cup five times in a row between 1956 and 1960, which included the 7–3 Hampden Park final against Eintracht Frankfurt in 1960. After these five consecutive successes, Real was permanently awarded the original cup and earning the right to wear the UEFA badge of honour. The club won the European Cup for a sixth time in 1966 defeating Partizan Belgrade 2–1 in the final with a team composed entirely of same nationality players, a first in the competition. This team became known as the Yé-yé. The name "Ye-yé" came from the "Yeah, yeah, yeah" chorus in The Beatles' song "She Loves You" after four members of the team posed for Diario Marca dressed in Beatles wigs. The Ye-yé generation was also European Cup runner-up in 1962 and 1964.

Amancio Amaro, captain of the Yé-yé.
In the 1970s, Real Madrid won 5 league championships and 3 Spanish Cups. The club played its first UEFA Cup Winners' Cup final in 1971 and lost to English side Chelsea 2–1. On 2 July 1978, club president Santiago Bernabéu died while the World Cup was being played in Argentina. The International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) decreed three days of mourning to honour him during the tournament. The following year, the club organized the first edition of the Santiago Bernabéu Trophy in the memory of its former president.

Quinta del Buitre and seventh European Cup (1980–2000)

By the early 1980s, Real Madrid had lost its grasp on the La Liga title until a new batch of home-grown stars brought domestic success back to the club. Spanish sport journalist Julio César Iglesias gave to this generation the name La Quinta del Buitre ("Vulture's Cohort"), which was derived from the nickname given to one of its members, Emilio Butragueño. The other four members were Manuel SanchísMartín VázquezMíchel andMiguel Pardeza. With La Quinta del Buitre (reduced to four members when Pardeza left the club for Zaragoza in 1986) and notable players like goalkeeper Francisco Buyo, right-back Miguel Porlán Chendo and Mexican striker Hugo Sánchez, Real Madrid had one of the best teams in Spain and Europe during the second half of the 1980s, winning two UEFA Cups, five Spanish championships in a row, one Spanish cup and three Spanish Super Cups. In the early 1990s, La Quinta del Buitre split up after Martín Vázquez, Emilio Butragueño and Míchel left the club.
In 1996, President Lorenzo Sanz appointed Fabio Capello as coach. Although his tenure lasted only one season, Real Madrid was proclaimed league champion and players like Roberto CarlosPredrag MijatovićDavor Šuker and Clarence Seedorf arrived at the club to strengthen a squad that already boasted the likes of RaúlFernando HierroIván Zamorano, and Fernando Redondo. As a result, Real Madrid (with the addition of Fernando Morientes in 1997) finally ended its 32-year wait for its seventh European Cup. In 1998, under manager Jupp Heynckes, The Whites defeated Juventus 1–0 in the final thanks to a goal from Predrag Mijatović.

Los Galácticos (2000–2006)


Beckham and Zidane were considered "Galácticos".
In July 2000, Florentino Pérez was elected club president. 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. 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 ZidaneRonaldo,Luís FigoRoberto CarlosRaúl and David Beckham. It is debatable whether the gamble paid off, as despite a UEFA Champions League and anIntercontinental Cup (football) win in 2002, followed by the League in 2003, the club failed to win a major trophy for the next three seasons. 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.
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. 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. 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.. In the final days of the transfer window, Fernando Morientes left the club on loan to Monaco. Real Madrid, with newly appointed coach Carlos Queiroz, started their domestic league slowly after a hard win over Real Betis.
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) — but the Brazilian 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.Luxemburgo would eventually resign and his replacement was Juan Ramón López Caro, formally the manager of Real Madrid Castilla. 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. 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.

New president Ramón Calderón (2006–2009)


Real Madrid's players celebrate their 2008 Supercopa de España title win against Valencia.
Ramón Calderón was elected as club president on 2 July 2006 and subsequently appointed Fabio Capello as the new coach and Predrag Mijatović as the new sporting director. Real Madrid won the La Liga title in 2007 for the first time in four years but Capello was sacked. On 9 June 2007, Real played against Zaragoza at La Romareda. The match got off to a bad start when Real Madrid were forced to change their lineup some minutes before the start of the match when young defender Miguel Torres tore his hamstring during warm-up.Zaragoza led Real 2-1 near the end of the match while Barcelona were also winning against Espanyol 2-1. Real's title challenge looked to be over. However, a late Ruud van Nistelrooy equalizer followed by a last minute Raúl Tamudo goal sprang Real Madrid's title hopes back into their favour. Sevilla were also held 0-0 away against Mallorca, which meant that a win at home against Mallorca would effectively secure Los Merengues their 30th Spanish league title.
The title was won on 17 June, Real faced Mallorca at the Bernabéu, while Barcelona and Sevilla, the other title challengers, faced Gimnàstic de Tarragona and Villarreal respectively. At half time Real were 0-1 down, while Barcelona had surged ahead into a 0-3 lead in Tarragona; however, three goals in the last half-an-hour secured Real Madrid a 3-1 win and their first league title since 2003. The first goal came fromReyes who scored after a good work from Higuaín. An own goal followed by another delightful goal from Reyes allowed Real to begin celebrating the title. Thousands of Real Madrid fans began going to Plaza de Cibeles to celebrate the title.

Second Pérez and Mourinho era (2009–present)


Cristiano Ronaldo is the world's most expensive player.
On 1 June 2009, Florentino Pérez regained Real Madrid's presidency. Pérez continued with the Galácticos policy pursued in his first term, buying Kaká from Milan,[34] and then purchasing Cristiano Ronaldo from Manchester United for a record breaking £80 million.
José Mourinho took over as manager in May 2010. In April 2011, a strange occurrence happened, for the first time ever, four Clásicos were to be played in a span of eighteen days. The first fixture was for the Liga campaign on 17 April (which ended 1-1 with penalty goals for both sides), theCopa del Rey final (which ended 1–0 to Madrid), and the controversial two-legged Champions League semifinal on 27 April and 2 May (3–1 loss on aggregate) to Madrid.
The first Clasico saw Cristiano Ronaldo get his first goal against Barcelona due to a penalty given to Madrid after a foul to Marcelo. The Copa del Rey final gave Real Madrid its first title under Mourinho with a header from Cristiano Ronaldo in extra time. The Champions League semifinal was perhaps the most controversial of the four, with the expulsion of Pepe in the first leg at the Santiago Bernabéu, after an alleged "dangerous challenge" to Barcelona defender Daniel Alves. Alves was carried out in a stretcher "unable to walk", but after Pepe was shown red, Alves came running back into the field within seconds. After Pepe's sending off, coach José Mourinho was also sent off, receiving a fine and a five-match ban. This same match was also controversial in that Barcelona midfielder Sergio Busquets being captured on video saying what seemed like a supposed racial slur to Madrid left-back Marcelo. The second leg was not as controversial as the first, with perhaps the exception of an annulled goal to Gonzalo Higuaín, after Cristiano Ronaldo had "fouled" Javier Mascherano as a result of a foul to Ronaldo by Gerard Piqué.
In the 2011–12 La Liga season, Real Madrid won the league, a record 32nd time in La Liga history and finished the season with a number of records including 100 points in a single season, a record 121 goals scored & goal difference of +89, and a record 16 away wins and 32 overall wins. In the same season, Cristiano Ronaldo become the fastest player to reach 100 goals in Spanish league history. In reaching 101 goals in 92 games, Ronaldo surpassed Real Madrid legend Ferenc Puskás, who scored 100 goals in 105 games. Ronaldo set a new club mark for individual goals scored in one year (60), and became the first player ever to score against all 19 opposition teams in a single season.

Crest and shirt


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. 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". Thus, Alfonso's crown was added to the crest and the club styled itself Real Madrid Club de Fútbol. 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. 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. 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. 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.

Real's traditional away colours are all black or all purple. The club's kit is currently manufactured by
 Adidas whose contract extends from 1998. Real Madrid's first shirt sponsor, Zanussi, agreed for the 1982–83, 1983–84 and 1984–85 seasons. Following that, the club was sponsored by Parmalat and Otaysa before a long-term deal was signed with Teka in 1992. In 2001, Real Madrid ended their contract with Teka and for one season used the Realmadrid.com logo to promote the club's website. Then, in 2002, a deal was signed with Siemens Mobile and in 2006, the BenQ Siemens logo appeared on the club's shirt. Real Madrid's current shirt sponsor is bwin.com following the economic problems of BenQ Siemens.Real Madrid's traditional home colours are all white, although before its foundation the first kit initially adopted a blue oblique stripe on the shirt (the design was kept in the club crest); but unlike today, dark blue socks were worn. In the same year, the blue socks were replaced by black ones. Real Madrid has maintained the white shirt for its home kit throughout the history of the club. There was however one season that the shirt and shorts were not both white. It was an initiative undertaken by Ecobal and Quesada in 1925, the two were traveling through England when they noticed the kit worn by London-based team Corinthian F.C., one of the most famous teams at the time known for its elegance and sportsmanship. It was decided that Real Madrid would wear black shorts in an attempt to look like the English team but the initiative lasted only one year. After being eliminated from the cup by Barcelona with a 1-5 defeat in Madrid and a 2-0 defeat in Catalonia, President Parages decided to return to an all-white kit claiming that the other brought bad luck. Years later, Leeds United switched their blue shirt for a white one after marveling at Real Madrid's 7-3 Victory against Eintracht Frankfurt in Glasgow's Hampden Park. By the early 1940s the manager changed the kit again by adding buttons to the shirt and the club's crest on the left breast (which have remained ever since). On 23 November 1947, in a game againstAtlético Madrid at the Metropolitano Stadium, Real Madrid became the first Spanish team to wear numbered shirts.

Grounds

Santiago Bernabéu
The Santiago Bernabeu Stadium - U-g-g-B-o-y.jpg
Broke ground27 October 1944
Opened14 December 1947
ArchitectManuel Muñoz Monasterio, Luis Alemany Soler, Antonio Lamela
Capacity85,454
Field dimensions107 × 72 m (351 × 236 ft)
After moving between grounds the team moved to the "Campo de O'Donnell" in 1912, which remained its home ground for eleven years. After this period, the club moved for one year to the Campo de Ciudad Lineal, a small ground with a capacity of 8,000 spectators. After that, Real Madrid moved its home matches to Estadio Chamartín which was inaugurated on 17 May 1923 with a match against Newcastle United. In this stadium, which hosted 22,500 spectators, Real Madrid celebrated its first Spanish league title.[10] After some successes, the 1943 elected president Santiago Bernabéu decided that the Estadio Chamartín was not big enough for the ambitions of the club. A new stadium was built and was inaugurated on 14 December 1947. This was the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium as it is known today, although it did not acquire this name until 1955. The first match held on Bernabéu was played between Real Madrid and the Portuguese club Belenenses and won by The Whites with 3–1, the first goal being scored by Sabino Barinaga.
The capacity has changed frequently, peaking at 120,000 after a 1953 expansion. Since then, there have been a number of reductions due to modernizations (the last standing places went away in 1998–99 in response to UEFA regulations which forbids standing at matches in the UEFA competition), countered to some extent by expansions. The last change was an increase of about five thousand to a capacity of 85,454, effected in 2011. A plan to add a retractable roof has been announced. Real Madrid has the fourth highest of the average attendances of European football clubs only behind Borussia DortmundFC Barcelona, and Manchester United.
The Bernabéu has hosted the 1964 European Championship final, the 1982 FIFA World Cup final, the 19571969 and 1980 European Cup finals and the 2010 Champions League Final. The stadium has its own Madrid Metro station along the 10 line called Santiago Bernabéu. On 14 November 2007, the Bernabéu has been upgraded to Elite Football Stadium status by UEFA.
On 9 May 2006, the Alfredo Di Stéfano Stadium was inaugurated at the City of Madrid where Real Madrid usually trains. The inaugural match was played between Real Madrid and Stade Reims, a rematch of the 1956 European Cup final. Real Madrid won the match 6–1 with goals from Sergio RamosCassano (2),Soldado (2), and Jurado. The venue is now part of the Ciudad Real Madrid, the club's new training facilities located outside Madrid in Valdebebas. The stadium holds 5,000 people and is Real Madrid Castilla's home ground. It is named after former Real footballer Alfredo Di Stéfano.

Rivalries

El Clásico


The passage of congratulating Real Madrid as champions of the league by Barcelona.
There 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.[81]
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.[82][83] 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.[84]
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).[85][86] However, during the Spanish Civil War, members of both clubs such as Josep Sunyol and Rafael Sánchez Guerrasuffered 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.[87] The 1960s saw the rivalry reach the European stage when they met twice at the knock-out rounds of the European Cup.[88] 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.[89]

El Derbi madrileño


Real Madrid supporters during the 2006 El Derbi madrileño match held at Santiago Bernabéu.
The club's nearest neighbour is Atlético Madrid, a rivalry being shared between fans of both football teams. Although Atlético was originally founded by three Basque students in 1903, it was joined in 1904 by dissident members of Madrid FC. Further tensions came because initially Real supporters came from the middle class while the Atlético supporters were drawn from the working class. Today these distinctions are largely blurred. They met for the first time on 21 February 1929 in matchday three of the first League Championship at the former Chamartín. It was the first official derby of the new tournament, and Real won 2–1.[10] The rivalry first gained international attention in 1959 during the European Cup when the two clubs met in the semi-final. Real won the first leg 2–1 at the Bernabéu while Atlético won 1–0 at the Metropolitano. The tie went to a replay and The Whites won 2–1. Atlético, however, gained some revenge when, led by former Real Madrid coach José Villalonga, it defeated The Whites in two successive Copa del Generalísimo finals in 1960 and 1961.[90]
Between 1961 and 1989, when Real dominated La Liga, only Atlético offered it any serious challenge, winning Liga titles in 1966, 1970, 1973 and 1977. In 1965, Atlético became the first team to beat Real at the Bernabéu in eight years. Real Madrid's record against Atlético in more recent times is very favorable.[91] A high point coming in the 2002–03 season, when The Whites clinched the La Liga title after an impressive victory at Atlético 0–4 at the Vicente Calderón Stadium.

First-team squad

As of 19 July 2012.
Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
No.PositionPlayer
1SpainGKIker Casillas (captain)[116]
2PortugalDFRicardo Carvalho
3PortugalDFPepe
4SpainDFSergio Ramos (vice-captain)[116]
5TurkeyMFNuri Şahin
6GermanyMFSami Khedira
7PortugalFWCristiano Ronaldo
8BrazilMFKaká
9FranceFWKarim Benzema
10GermanyMFMesut Özil
11SpainMFEsteban Granero
No.PositionPlayer
12BrazilDFMarcelo (vice-captain)[116]
13SpainGKAntonio Adán
14SpainMFXabi Alonso
15PortugalDFFábio Coentrão
17SpainDFÁlvaro Arbeloa
18SpainDFRaúl Albiol
19FranceDFRaphaël Varane
20ArgentinaFWGonzalo Higuaín (vice-captain)[116]
21SpainMFJosé Callejón
22ArgentinaMFÁngel di María
24FranceMFLassana Diarra

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
No.PositionPlayer
SpainMFPedro León (at Getafe)

Personnel

Current technical staff


Portuguese José Mourinho is the current manager of the team.
See also List of Real Madrid C.F. managers
PositionStaff
Head coachJosé Mourinho
Assistant CoachAitor Karanka
Fitness TrainerRui Faria
Goalkeeper CoachSilvino Louro
Technical AssistantJosé Morais
Match delegateChendo