Chapter 8 – Penya Gol de Baix: the penya of Joan Gamper

As we have seen in previous chapters, Barça supporters’ clubs already existed and were very active in the 1920s. A very illustrative example of this can be found in 1927 with the Penya Gol de Baix, which organised this peculiar “friendly game” on the morning of the same day that a match was played in … Read more

Chapter 7 – The penyes and Samitier, a very close marriage

Josep Samitier was the promoter of the Penya Solera in 1944, when he returned to Barça to take charge of the bench. The prodigal son’s return could not have gone better, as FC Barcelona won the league title for the second time in 16 years. The Golden Age Barça star’s passion for the supporters’ clubs … Read more

Chapter 6 – That 1926 Spanish Championship finale

The Spanish Championship final held on 16 May 1926 meant a lot in the evolution of the supporters’ clubs’ world and in the collective euphoria of FC Barcelona fans in general. It should be remembered that the Spanish Championship, currently the Copa del Rey (the Spanish Liga would still take three years to appear) was … Read more

Chapter 4 – What happened to Penya Esportiva Esquerra?

The mystery of this supporters’ club has survived to the present day due to its great creation and momentum, but short-lived. What happened? Initially, in April 1923, to celebrate the Club’s silver jubilee, the Penya Esportiva Esquerra was founded, made up only of “independent-minded” members. A year and a half later, on the eve of … Read more

The Confederació continues to promote the FC Barcelona history to students

The headquarters of the Confederació Mundial de Penyes del FC Barcelona recently welcomed again youngsters from the United States who are studying in Barcelona. The reason was a new edition, the 18th, of the talk that the blaugrana entity organizes in collaboration with the Study Abroad Program of the Universitat Pompeu Fabra. In total, more … Read more

Chapter 3 – Penya Ardèvol: the first radical penya

It is sometimes said, with quite convincing arguments, that in football everything has already been invented. In the sphere of FC Barcelona’s most radical supporters’ clubs or groups, these seem to have emerged in the late eighties or early nineties, but in reality they go back much further. The reason: the sporting and political rivalry … Read more

Chapter 1 – The origin of the “Penya del Barça” concept

In 2019, the Confederació Mundial de Penyes del FC Barcelona celebrated the Centenary of the first official FC Barcelona supporters’ club. It was 100 years of an official one, but where does this need for associationism among FC Barcelona members come from unofficially? Where is the big bang, the starting spark, the place where supporters … Read more