Espanyol on:
[Wikipedia]
[Google]
[Amazon]
Reial Club Deportiu Espanyol de Barcelona (; "Royal Spanish Sports Club of Barcelona"), commonly known as Espanyol, is a professional
Initially known as the Sociedad Española de Football on its foundation, the name was changed to Club Español de Fútbol in 1901. In 1906, the club folded due to financial reasons and most of the players joined the X Sporting Club, which came to win the Catalan football championship, Campionat de Catalunya three times in a row before disappearing in 1908 to merge with the Spanish Jiu-Jitsu Club to be effectively relaunched as the Club Deportivo Español, and in 1910, they adopted their present-day colours. Espanyol is one of several Spanish football clubs granted patronage by the List of Spanish monarchs, Spanish crown and thus entitled to use ''Real'' in their names and the Spanish Royal Crown, royal crown on their badge. This right was granted to Espanyol in 1912 by Alfonso XIII of Spain, Alfonso XIII and the club subsequently became known as the Real Club Deportivo Español.
Following the abdication of the same king in 1931 and the declaration of the Second Spanish Republic, due to prohibition of royal symbols, the club adopted the more Catalan/republican friendly name, Club Esportiu Espanyol. After the Spanish Civil War, the name was reverted.
The club took the Catalan spelling for its name in February 1995. The word "''Deportiu''" in Reial Club Deportiu Espanyol de Barcelona is a Catalanised form of the original word "''Deportivo''" (Castilian language, Castilian), despite the correct word being "''Esportiu''" in the Catalan language. This choice was made in order to retain the initials "RCD" in the club's name.
File:RCD Espanyol campions 1904.jpg, CD Espanyol de Barcelona, Catalan champions in 1904
File:RCD Espanyol 1912.jpg, RCD Español in 1912.
The club originally played in bright yellow shirts, with the colour of the shorts being left to the individual player. A friend of the club founder owned a textile business and happened to have an abundance of yellow material left over from a job. In 1910, the club changed its name to the Club Deportivo Español and chose blue and white stripes as shirt colours and as the central colours of the club badge. Blue and white were chosen in homage to the colours appearing on the shield of the great Sicilian-Aragonese Admiral Roger de Lluria, who sailed the Mediterranean protecting the interests of the Crown of Aragon in the Middle Ages. The club was successful from the very beginning, winning the first Catalan football championship, Campionat de Catalunya in 1903 and subsequently playing in the very first Copa del Rey in 1903 Copa del Rey, 1903.
In 1906 ''Club Español de Football'' had to suspend its activities due to a lack of players, since most of them were university students who enrolled to study at universities outside Catalonia. X Sporting Club took advantage of this as most of the remaining Español players joined them, which meant a big leap in quality for the club, and as a result, the X won the Catalan football championship, Catalan championship three times in a row between 1905 and 1908, beating the likes of FC Internacional and FC Barcelona for the title. This historic side had the likes of Pedro Gibert (footballer), Pedro Gibert, José Irízar and Santiago Massana. It was not until 1909 that X and Español were restructured again, when several of the former university students returned to
In January 2009, former Espanyol defender Mauricio Pochettino was hired as manager with the club in the relegation zone – his first senior job. He won 2–1 against rivals Barcelona at the Camp Nou in February to help keep the club up; Barcelona, under Pep Guardiola, won the Treble (association football), treble that season.
After 12 seasons playing at the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys, Estadi Olímpic de Montjuïc, Espanyol moved to the RCDE Stadium, Estadi de Cornellá-El Prat. The new stadium was officially inaugurated on 2 August 2009 with a match between Espanyol and Liverpool F.C., Liverpool; Espanyol won 3–0, with Luis García (footballer, born 1981), Luis García scoring the first goal at the ground, followed by a Ben Sahar double. Six days later, Espanyol captain Daniel Jarque died from a cardiac arrest aged 26 in the Florence neighbourhood of Centro Tecnico Federale di Coverciano, Coverciano, where the club was at the time after playing several fixtures in Italy. Since then, in the 21st minute – his former shirt number – of every Espanyol match, an ovation is made in his honour for a full minute.
After Pochettino left in 2012, the club maintained themselves in the top flight under a series of other managers. In January 2016, Chinese businessman Chen Yansheng took over the club by acquiring a 54% stake. In the 2018–19 La Liga, 2018–19 season, Espanyol finished 7th, thus returning to the Europa League for the first time since their final run in 2006–07. However, the club suffered relegation for the first time since 1994 the following season, after a 1–0 loss at Barcelona. On 3 August 2020 the club published an official statement urging La Liga to suspend relegation; nevertheless relegation was not avoided. Espanyol won promotion back to La Liga at the first attempt on 8 May 2021 following a 0–0 draw against Real Zaragoza, Zaragoza, with four matches to spare in the 42-game season.
Since 2022，RCDE has achieved a strategic cooperation with LEYU SPORTS. And LEYU became Official Asian Partner of RCDE.
File:Sarrià.jpg, Sarrià Stadium, Estadi de Sarrià
File:Estadi Olímpic de Montjuïc - Barcelona's 1992 Olympic Stadium.jpg, Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys, Estadi Olímpic de Montjüic
File:Estadicornellaelprat 3.jpg, RCDE Stadium
Official website
RCD Espanyol
at La Liga
RCD Espanyol
at UEFA {{DEFAULTSORT:Espanyol RCD Espanyol, La Liga clubs Football clubs in Barcelona Football clubs in Catalonia Copa del Rey winners Organisations based in Spain with royal patronage Association football clubs established in 1900 1900 establishments in Spain
sports club
A sports club or sporting club, sometimes an athletics club or sports society or sports association, is a group of people formed for the purpose of playing sports.
Sports clubs range from organisations whose members play together, unpaid, and ...
based in Barcelona
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...
, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top tier of the Spanish football league system.
Founded in 1900 in Barcelona
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...
, Espanyol currently play their home games at the RCDE Stadium, which holds up to 40,000 spectators. Domestically, Espanyol has won the Copa del Rey four times, most recently in 2006 Copa del Rey Final, 2006. In international competitions, the club reached the UEFA Europa League, UEFA Cup final in 1988 UEFA Cup Final, 1988 and 2007 UEFA Cup Final, 2007. It has a Derbi barceloní, long-standing rivalry with FC Barcelona.
Name
Initially known as the Sociedad Española de Football on its foundation, the name was changed to Club Español de Fútbol in 1901. In 1906, the club folded due to financial reasons and most of the players joined the X Sporting Club, which came to win the Catalan football championship, Campionat de Catalunya three times in a row before disappearing in 1908 to merge with the Spanish Jiu-Jitsu Club to be effectively relaunched as the Club Deportivo Español, and in 1910, they adopted their present-day colours. Espanyol is one of several Spanish football clubs granted patronage by the List of Spanish monarchs, Spanish crown and thus entitled to use ''Real'' in their names and the Spanish Royal Crown, royal crown on their badge. This right was granted to Espanyol in 1912 by Alfonso XIII of Spain, Alfonso XIII and the club subsequently became known as the Real Club Deportivo Español.
Following the abdication of the same king in 1931 and the declaration of the Second Spanish Republic, due to prohibition of royal symbols, the club adopted the more Catalan/republican friendly name, Club Esportiu Espanyol. After the Spanish Civil War, the name was reverted.
The club took the Catalan spelling for its name in February 1995. The word "''Deportiu''" in Reial Club Deportiu Espanyol de Barcelona is a Catalanised form of the original word "''Deportivo''" (Castilian language, Castilian), despite the correct word being "''Esportiu''" in the Catalan language. This choice was made in order to retain the initials "RCD" in the club's name.
History
Foundation and club culture
Espanyol was founded on 28 October 1900 by Ángel Rodríguez Ruiz (1879–1959), an engineering student at the University of Barcelona. The club's original home was in the well-off district of Sarrià-Sant Gervasi, Sarrià; Espanyol was the first club in Spain to be formed exclusively by Spanish fans of the game, with the other early clubs having links to Britain or central Europe.
The club originally played in bright yellow shirts, with the colour of the shorts being left to the individual player. A friend of the club founder owned a textile business and happened to have an abundance of yellow material left over from a job. In 1910, the club changed its name to the Club Deportivo Español and chose blue and white stripes as shirt colours and as the central colours of the club badge. Blue and white were chosen in homage to the colours appearing on the shield of the great Sicilian-Aragonese Admiral Roger de Lluria, who sailed the Mediterranean protecting the interests of the Crown of Aragon in the Middle Ages. The club was successful from the very beginning, winning the first Catalan football championship, Campionat de Catalunya in 1903 and subsequently playing in the very first Copa del Rey in 1903 Copa del Rey, 1903.
In 1906 ''Club Español de Football'' had to suspend its activities due to a lack of players, since most of them were university students who enrolled to study at universities outside Catalonia. X Sporting Club took advantage of this as most of the remaining Español players joined them, which meant a big leap in quality for the club, and as a result, the X won the Catalan football championship, Catalan championship three times in a row between 1905 and 1908, beating the likes of FC Internacional and FC Barcelona for the title. This historic side had the likes of Pedro Gibert (footballer), Pedro Gibert, José Irízar and Santiago Massana. It was not until 1909 that X and Español were restructured again, when several of the former university students returned to Barcelona
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...
with the idea of refounding ''Club Español de Football'', which they achieved on 27 December 1908, when X merged with the Spanish Jiu-Jitsu Club.
In the 1910s, they won the Catalan football championship, Campionat de Catalunya three times, in 1911–12, 1914–15 and 1917–18, winning later largely thanks to their backline led by Ricardo Zamora. They also reached the final of the Copa del Rey twice in 1911 Copa del Rey, 1911 and 1915 Copa del Rey, 1915, but lost to Athletic Bilbao on both occasions.
In 1994, Espanyol created its reserve team, RCD Espanyol B, Espanyol B, currently playing in the Segunda División B.
Two UEFA Cup finals (1988–2009)
Javier Clemente was hired in 1986. In his first season, he took the team to a joint-best 3rd place, qualifying for the UEFA Cup. They defeated Borussia Mönchengladbach, A.C. Milan, Inter Milan, TJ Vitkovice and Club Brugge KV to reach the 1988 UEFA Cup Final, final, losing on penalties to Bayer 04 Leverkusen after a 3–3 aggregate draw. Two relegations followed, but the club remained in La Liga from winning the 1993–94 Segunda División until relegated at the conclusion of the 2019-20 COVID pandemic impacted season. President from 1989 to 1993, Juli Pardo oversaw the transformation of the club into a Sociedad Anónima Deportiva. In the wake of the accumulated debt, the club were forced to sell the Sarrià Stadium, which was eventually demolished in 1997. Paco Flores' Espanyol won the 2000 Copa del Rey Final 2–1 against Atlético Madrid at Mestalla, a first cup win since 1940. Six years later, under Miguel Ángel Lotina, the club won again, this time 4–1 against Real Zaragoza in Madrid, with goals by Raúl Tamudo, Luis García (footballer, born 1981), Luis García (two) and Ferrán Corominas, Coro. With this cup win, Espanyol entered the UEFA Europa League, UEFA Cup. They won all their group games, before dispatching A.S. Livorno Calcio, Livorno, Maccabi Haifa F.C., Maccabi Haifa, S.L. Benfica, Benfica, and SV Werder Bremen, Werder Bremen to reach the final. In the final, held on 16 May at Hampden Park in Glasgow, Espanyol fell to fellow La Liga side Sevilla FC, Sevilla, losing 3–1 in a shootout following a 2–2 draw. They became the only football team in UEFA Cup history to remain unbeaten in the tournament, yet not take home the trophy. Walter Pandiani, who would leave the club at the end of the season, was the UEFA Cup's top goalscorer that season. On 9 June 2007, Tamudo became Espanyol's highest-ever goalscorer after surpassing the 111 goals scored by Rafael Marañón, and ended the night with 113. On 31 May 2009, Espanyol played its last match at the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys, Estadio Olímpico de Montjuic, a 3–0 defeat of Málaga CF, Málaga. Espanyol had played in the Estadi Olímpic after moving from their previous ground in Sarria. With the move, club talisman Raúl Tamudo had the unique distinction of having played in three different home stadiums with his club: Sarrià, Montjuïc and, beginning in the 2009–10 La Liga, 2009–10 season, the Cornellà-El Prat.Recent years (2009–present)
In January 2009, former Espanyol defender Mauricio Pochettino was hired as manager with the club in the relegation zone – his first senior job. He won 2–1 against rivals Barcelona at the Camp Nou in February to help keep the club up; Barcelona, under Pep Guardiola, won the Treble (association football), treble that season.
After 12 seasons playing at the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys, Estadi Olímpic de Montjuïc, Espanyol moved to the RCDE Stadium, Estadi de Cornellá-El Prat. The new stadium was officially inaugurated on 2 August 2009 with a match between Espanyol and Liverpool F.C., Liverpool; Espanyol won 3–0, with Luis García (footballer, born 1981), Luis García scoring the first goal at the ground, followed by a Ben Sahar double. Six days later, Espanyol captain Daniel Jarque died from a cardiac arrest aged 26 in the Florence neighbourhood of Centro Tecnico Federale di Coverciano, Coverciano, where the club was at the time after playing several fixtures in Italy. Since then, in the 21st minute – his former shirt number – of every Espanyol match, an ovation is made in his honour for a full minute.
After Pochettino left in 2012, the club maintained themselves in the top flight under a series of other managers. In January 2016, Chinese businessman Chen Yansheng took over the club by acquiring a 54% stake. In the 2018–19 La Liga, 2018–19 season, Espanyol finished 7th, thus returning to the Europa League for the first time since their final run in 2006–07. However, the club suffered relegation for the first time since 1994 the following season, after a 1–0 loss at Barcelona. On 3 August 2020 the club published an official statement urging La Liga to suspend relegation; nevertheless relegation was not avoided. Espanyol won promotion back to La Liga at the first attempt on 8 May 2021 following a 0–0 draw against Real Zaragoza, Zaragoza, with four matches to spare in the 42-game season.
Since 2022，RCDE has achieved a strategic cooperation with LEYU SPORTS. And LEYU became Official Asian Partner of RCDE.
Rivalries
''El derbi barceloní''
In the first half of the 20th century during the Dictatorship of Primo de Rivera, Miguel Primo de Rivera dictatorship (1923–1930), FC Barcelona was seen as a symbol of Catalans, Catalan identity. This contrasted with RCD Espanyol which cultivated a kind of compliance with the central authority. In 1918, the municipalities of Catalonia promoted a campaign to ask the Spanish Government for a Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia, Statute of Autonomy. FC Barcelona joined that request and the Catalan press recognized FC Barcelona as a major cultural arm of the Catalan independence movement. The city's other team, RCD Espanyol, dissociated itself from the claim due to the former's success on the European stage. Today FC Barcelona is the club that is closer to the political powers in Catalonia. Its last presidents have linked the club with the Catalan independence, Catalan independence movement and the holding of a referendum, even though this causes discomfort among some Catalan fans and those in the rest of Spain who feel neglected and think the team is biased against them. Although some of RCD Espanyol's directors have expressed pro-independence stances, the club stays out of politics. It is believed that most of the team's fans are against the independence of Catalonia. On numerous occasions RCD Espanyol has complained of unfavourable and sometimes directly offensive treatment towards the club in favour of FC Barcelona by some Catalonian public media like TV3 (Catalonia), TV3. Despite these differences in ideology, the ''derbi'' (derby) has always been more relevant to Espanyol supporters than those of Barcelona (who hold El Clásico in higher regard instead) due to the difference in objectives. Though it is the most played local derby in the history of La Liga, it is also the most unbalanced, with Barcelona overwhelmingly dominant. In the league table, Espanyol has only managed to finish above Barça on three occasions in almost 70 years and the only all-Catalan Copa del Rey final was won by Barça in 1957. Espanyol has the consolation of achieving the largest margin win with a 6–0 victory in 1951. Espanyol achieved a 2–1 win against FC Barcelona during the 2008–09 season, becoming the first team to defeat Barcelona at Camp Nou in their treble-winning 2008–09 FC Barcelona season, season. Espanyol lost 0–1 to FC Barcelona on 8 July 2020, to be relegated to the Segunda División.Stadium
From 1923 until 1997, Espanyol played their home games in Sarrià Stadium, Estadi de Sarrià in the Sarrià-Sant Gervasi district of Barcelona. In 1997, they moved to the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys on Montjuïc. For the beginning of the 2009–10 season, Espanyol moved into the newly constructed RCDE Stadium (also known as Estadi Cornellà-El Prat) between Cornellà de Llobregat and El Prat de Llobregat.Competition summary
*80 ''seasons in La Liga, Primera División'' *4 ''seasons in Segunda División'' *8 ''participations in UEFA Cup / UEFA Europa League'' *2 ''participations in Inter-Cities Fairs Cup'' *2 ''participations in UEFA Intertoto Cup''Achievements
*In 1928, Espanyol became a founding member of La Liga, and in 1929, the team won their first Copa del Rey. Espanyol has completed the highest number of seasons in La Liga without winning the title. *The team has qualified for the UEFA Europa League, UEFA Cup/Europa League eight times (including the qualifications following their 1999–2000 Copa del Rey, 2000 and 2005–06 Copa del Rey, 2006 Spanish Cup wins, which in earlier eras would instead have granted entry to the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup) and reached the final in 1988 UEFA Cup Final, 1988, losing to Bayer 04 Leverkusen, Bayer Leverkusen of then-West Germany on Penalty shootout (association football), penalty kicks (3–2), after a two-legged final of contrasts ended level (3–0 inBarcelona
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...
, 0–3 in Leverkusen) and in 2007 UEFA Cup Final, 2007, losing to compatriots Sevilla FC, Sevilla, again on penalties (3–1) after a memorable match at Hampden Park, Glasgow ended 1–1 after normal time, and 2–2 after extra time.
Honours
Men's football
National
*Copa del Rey : Winners (4): 1928–29 Copa del Rey, 1928–29, 1940 Copa del Generalísimo, 1940, 1999–2000 Copa del Rey, 1999–2000, 2005–06 Copa del Rey, 2005–06 :Runners-up (5): 1911 Copa del Rey, 1911, 1915 Copa del Rey, 1915, 1941 Copa del Generalísimo, 1941, 1947 Copa del Generalísimo, 1947, 1957 Copa del Generalísimo, 1957 *Segunda División :Winners (2): 1993–94 Segunda División, 1993–94, 2020–21 Segunda División, 2020–21 *Supercopa de España :Runners-up: 2000 Supercopa de Espana, 2000, 2006 Supercopa de Espana, 2006International
*UEFA Europa League, UEFA Cup :Runners-up: 1987–88 UEFA Cup, 1987–88, 2006–07 UEFA Cup, 2006–07Regional
*Campionat de Catalunya :Winners (11): 1903–04, 1905–06, 1906–07, 1907–08, 1911–12, 1914–15, 1917–18, 1928–29, 1932–33, 1936–37, 1939–40 *Supercopa de Catalunya :Winners: 2016Women's football
*Primera División (women), Primera División :Winners (1): 2005–06 Superliga Femenina, 2005–06 :''Runners-up (3):'' 2006–07 Superliga Femenina, 2006–07, 2009–10 Superliga Femenina, 2009–10, 2010–11 Superliga Femenina, 2010–11 *Copa de la Reina de Fútbol, Copa de la Reina :Winners (6): 1996 Copa de la Reina de Fútbol, 1996, 1997 Copa de la Reina de Fútbol, 1997, 2006 Copa de la Reina de Fútbol, 2006, 2009 Copa de la Reina de Fútbol, 2009, 2010 Copa de la Reina de Fútbol, 2010, 2012 Copa de la Reina de Fútbol, 2012 :''Runners-up (4):'' 1990 Copa de la Reina de Fútbol, 1990, 2002 Copa de la Reina de Fútbol, 2002, 2007 Copa de la Reina de Fútbol, 2007, 2011 Copa de la Reina de Fútbol, 2011Players
Current squad
.Reserve team
Out on loan
Retired numbers
;NotesPlayers with most appearances
NotesCoaches
Club officials
Current technical staff
Board of directors
Presidents
Historical departments of RCD Espanyol
Until the 1990s, Espanyol had several sporting sections. In March 2017, the Association of Supporters and Shareholders of RCD Espanyol boosted a project for recovering the sporting sections of the club, but this time without any economic link with the football team. The new multi-sports club was created with the name of SD Espanyol, Seccions Deportives Espanyol (''Sporting sections Espanyol''). Two months later, the association confirmed that Espanyol would start competing in the 2017–18 season, with a roller hockey team and women's volleyball teams. In the next season, the basketball section was refounded and a new section of handball would be created.Men's basketball
*Copa del Rey de Baloncesto, Copa del Rey :Winners (1): 1941 *Catalan basketball championship, Catalan championship :Winners (2): 1931, 1932 :''Runners-up (3):'' 1941, 1943, 1954Women's basketball
*Copa de la Reina de Baloncesto, Copa de la Reina :Winners (1): 1943 :''Runners-up (1):'' 1944Men's rink hockey
*Copa del Rey de Hockey Patines, Copa del Rey :Winners (11): 1944, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1951, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1961, 1962 :''Runners-up (4):'' 1946, 1952, 1953, 1958Women's volleyball
*Superliga Femenina de Voleibol, Superliga :Winners (3): 1985, 1988, 1991 *Copa de la Reina de Voleibol, Copa de la Reina :Winners (5): 1984, 1985, 1986, 1990, 1992Men's baseball
*División de Honor de Béisbol, División de Honor :Winners (2): 1946, 1953See also
* RCD Espanyol B * RCD Espanyol cantera * Ciutat de Barcelona TrophyReferences
External links
Official website
RCD Espanyol
at La Liga
RCD Espanyol
at UEFA {{DEFAULTSORT:Espanyol RCD Espanyol, La Liga clubs Football clubs in Barcelona Football clubs in Catalonia Copa del Rey winners Organisations based in Spain with royal patronage Association football clubs established in 1900 1900 establishments in Spain