Santiago Bernabeu, who served as president of Real Madrid for the longest period in its history, 35 years, spent most of his 69 years at Real Madrid had said, “The Real Madrid shirt is white. It can stain mud, sweat, and even of blood, but never of shame.” His name is also the name of the Real Madrid stadium today. Soccer, it’s a simple game where you try to score a goal for 90 minutes, but it’s anything but simple. Behind every goal, there are stories of dedication, strategy, and sacrifice. It is a testament to the fight of will, the display of skill, and the passion that unites players and fans alike as one. The road to victory is filled with challenges, but the glory will remain in our hearts forever.
Real Madrid Football Club, also known as Royal Madrid Football Club, was officially founded on March 6, 1902, by Juan Padrós and his brother Carlos. The Padrós brothers held a meeting in the back room of their family-run fashion business, Al Capricho, inviting other soccer enthusiasts to join the club. They wanted the club to embody the idea that soccer should be accessible to people of all social classes, and the name Madrid Football Club was unanimously accepted. The honorary title “Real,” which means “royal” in Spanish, was awarded by Alfonso XIII in 1920 and features a crown on its emblem. Real Madrid has played their home games at the 85,000-seat Santiago Bernabéu in the heart of Madrid since 1947. Real Madrid won its first title just three years after its founding. This team has achieved an incredible record since 1905, winning 15 Champions Leagues, 36 Spanish Championships, and 6 UEFA Super Cups.
Real Madrid has many famous soccer players whose names are well-known around the world. There are many players who have achieved incredible results over the past 122 years, but let’s look at three representative players: Puskás Ferenc, Zinedine Zidane, and Cristiano Ronaldo.
Puskás played for Real Madrid from 1958-1966. He scored a whopping 242 goals in 262 games and won 5 La Liga titles, 1 Copa del Rey, 3 European Cups, and an Intercontinental Cup during his time with Real Madrid. Also in 2009, FIFA emphasized the importance of preserving the memories of the greatest players in history by establishing the Puskas Award. This award is given to the player who scores the best goal in the world during the year. FIFA says that the winner is chosen without considering the competition’s gender or nationality, which is impressive considering that even if you play in the fifth division, you can still score incredible goals and win the Puskás Award. It is a monumental statement.
The second player, Zinedine Zidane, has achieved great results as a player and a coach. He played for Real Madrid from 2001 to 2006 and coached from 2013 to 2021. He played 227 games for 6 years, scoring 49 goals and providing 66 assists. During his playing career at Real Madrid, he won the best FIFA men’s player, the La Liga title, the UEFA Best Player in Europe, the Champions League, the Spanish Champion, the UEFA Super Cup, 2 Spanish Super Cups, and 1 Intercontinental Cup. He is also highly praised as a coach. He managed the players well in the UEFA Champions League from 2016 to 2018 and showed a spectacular achievement of winning the league for 3 consecutive years.
The last player’s name, Cristiano Ronaldo, makes my heart beat. He joined Real Madrid in 2009 and is the player with the highest transfer fee in history, which was €94 million. He played for Real Madrid from 2009 to 2018 and won The Best FIFA Men’s Players twice, La Liga titles 4 times, UEFA Best Player in Europe 3 times, Champions Leagues 4 times, FIFA Club World Cups 3 times, Spanish champions twice, 3 UEFA Super Cups, 2 Spanish Cups, and 2 Spanish Super Cups. He created a story that will never be repeated in in La Liga along with another great footballer, Lionel Messi. When you look at his long-distance shots during his playing days, you get the feeling that this is something that no human can do.
Even now, Real Madrid’s history continues. Recently, they have been writing a better history by recruiting players such as Kylian Mbappe and Endrik. Although they did not win the treble in the 23/24 season, viewers speculate that they will sweep the championship with the diamond tactics of Kylian Mbappé, Vinicius Junior, Rodrigo, and Bellingham. If they win the treble this season, Barcelona fans will be overly envious. Here, a “treble” is when a team wins all three major competitions in one season. A treble is an extremely difficult feat to achieve and shows consistent performance and depth in a team over a single season.
Barcelona has been hit hard by the pandemic, dropping from hundreds of millions of euros per game to zero as they play without fans. The suspension of the season has also reduced broadcasting fees. Despite the drastic drop in revenue, the highest player salaries in Europe have remained the same and significant debt has been accumulated. As a result, we’re not seeing the top-class players and coaches that we used to, and the fierce rivalry between Barcelona and Real Madrid that was once highlighted by stars like Ronaldo has diminished. La Liga needs era-defining players like Ronaldo and Messi to represent their country and league, but it is unfortunate that Barcelona’s financial difficulties have made it impossible to see such players.
Real Madrid is a team with a long history, starting in 1902 and continuing to this day. It has changed and developed historically through various players, coaches, and situations, and is now the world’s greatest team loved by many people. It will continue to develop through people’s continued love and interest.
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