FC Barcelona
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Futbol Club Barcelona (Catalan pronunciation: [fudˈbɔl ˈklub bəɾsəˈlonə] ), commonly known as FC Barcelona and colloquially as Barça ([ˈbaɾsə]), is a professional football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of Spanish football. Founded in 1899 by a group of Swiss, Catalan, German, and English footballers led by Joan Gamper, the club has become a symbol of Catalan culture and Catalanism, hence the motto "Més que un club" ("More than a club"). Unlike many other football clubs, the supporters own and operate Barcelona. It is the third-most valuable football club in the world, worth $5.6 billion, and the world's fourth richest football club in terms of revenue, with an annual turnover of €800.1 million. The official Barcelona anthem is the "Cant del Barça", written by Jaume Picas and Josep Maria Espinàs. Barcelona traditionally play in dark shades of blue and garnet stripes, hence nicknamed Blaugrana. Barcelona are one of the world's most decorated clubs. Domestically, Barcelona has won a record 80 trophies: 28 La Liga, 32 Copa del Rey, 2 Copa de la Liga, 15 Supercopa de España and 3 Copa Eva Duarte titles, as well as being the record holder for the latter four competitions. In international club football, Barça has won 22 European and worldwide titles: five UEFA Champions League titles, a record four UEFA Cup Winners' Cups, a record three Inter-Cities Fairs Cups, five UEFA Super Cups, a joint record two Latin Cups and three FIFA Club World Cups. Barcelona was ranked first in the International Federation of Football History & Statistics Club World Ranking for 1997, 2009, 2011, 2012 and 2015, and occupies the ninth position on the UEFA club rankings as of May 2023. The club has a long-standing rivalry with Real Madrid, and matches between the two teams are referred to as El Clásico. Barcelona is one of the most widely supported teams in the world, and the club has one of the largest social media followings in the world among sports teams. Barcelona players have won a joint record twelve Ballon d'Or awards, with recipients including Johan Cruyff, as well as a record six FIFA World Player of the Year awards, with winners including Romário, Ronaldo, Rivaldo, Ronaldinho and Lionel Messi. In 2010, three players who came through the club's youth academy—Lionel Messi, Andrés Iniesta and Xavi—were chosen as the three best players in the world in the Ballon d'Or ranking, an unprecedented feat for players from the same football academy. Additionally, players representing the club have won a record eight European Golden Shoe awards. Barcelona is one of three founding members of the Primera División that have never been relegated from the top division since its inception in 1929, along with Athletic Bilbao and Real Madrid. In 2009, Barcelona became the first Spanish club to win the continental treble consisting of La Liga, Copa del Rey and UEFA Champions League titles, and also became the first European football club to win six competitions in a single year, by also triumphing in the Spanish Super Cup, UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup. In 2011, the club became European champions again, winning five trophies. This Barcelona team, which won fourteen trophies in just four years under Pep Guardiola, is considered by some in the sport to be the greatest of all time. By winning their fifth Champions League trophy in 2015 under Luis Enrique, Barcelona became the first European football club in history to achieve the continental treble twice.