Barcelona S.C.

Barcelona Sporting Club was founded on 1 May 1925 by Eutimio Pérez, a Spanish immigrant who decided to name the club after his home city of Barcelona, Spain. The team was named after Pérez's return to Ecuador, and BSC's Barça-like crest was adopted later on. The team competed in the provincial amateur tournament organized by Asociación de Fútbol del Guayas (AFG), which included clubs from around the Guayas Province in Ecuador. In the 1940s, Barcelona's popularity grew partly by its notoriety in playing matches against important Colombian teams, such as Deportivo Cali and Millionarios, two of the best teams from Colombia's golden era of football. Barcelona defeated Millionarios twice in Guayaquil, by scores of 3–2 and 1–0.

Barcelona was formed in the same place where the club which would become its most intense sporting rival was founded, Club Sport Emelec. Both clubs were born in the same Guayaquil neighborhood, Astillero de Guayaquil.

In 1950, Barcelona Sporting Club won its first AFG amateur title; the following year, the Association turned professional, and between 1951 and 1967, Barcelona racked up five professional regional titles and finished as runners-up six times, tying crosstown rival Emelec for the most titles. In 1957, as one of the top two finishers in the Guayas regional tournament, Barcelona was invited to participate in the newly organized Serie A de Ecuador, which would crown a national championship from among the top two teams from both the AFG and the Interandino tournament disputed by teams from Quito and Ambato. Barcelona of Guayaquil finished second in their first participation. Barcelona won its first national title in 1960, and became the first Ecuadorian team to compete in the Copa Libertadores.

• First match: 15 June 1925 vs Ayacucho (1–0)
• First international match: 19 March 1931 vs Deportivo Cali (4–4)

By the 1970s, Barcelona had established themselves as one of Ecuador's more popular teams after winning a number of provincial and national championships. Despite their national success, their performance in the Copa Libertadores had been lackluster, having exited the tournament early in competition. That changed in 1971, when they reached the semi-finals of the tournament with a star-studded squad that featured players such as Brazilian international Jose Paes, Peruvian World Cup player Pedro Pablo León, and Ecuadorian legend Alberto Spencer. Although they failed to reach the finals, at that time Estudiantes de La Plata was undefeated 4 years in row in home matches in Copa Libertadores, they managed to defeat three-time tournament winner Estudiantes de La Plata 1–0 in La Plata, later it would be recognized as La Hazaña de la Plata.[3] In 1972, they reached the semi-finals again, establishing themselves in the international stage.

The first two years of the decade were in stark contrast to the remainder; after the 1972 season, the club entered a dry spell that would last nine years. Barcelona did not win a national title, nor did it qualify for the Copa Libertadores, until the 1980s.

In the 1980s, Barcelona shed the shackles of the prior decade and resurged on the international and domestic fronts. In 1980, the team won their first national title since 1971, going on to win four more before the end of the decade, making the 1980s the team's most successful period in terms of national titles; Barcelona became the first Ecuadorian squad to win 10 national championships. During this period, Barcelona competed in six editions of the Copa Libertadores, reaching the semi-finals twice in 1986 and 1987. In 1988, the club hosted a historic meeting against FC Barcelona from Spain, homonym to the Ecuadorian club, during the Guayaquil City Cup friendly; the Ecuadorian Barcelona emerged victoriously 2–1.[4]

In 1987, Barcelona inaugurated a new home ground, the Estadio Monumental. With an opening capacity of almost 90,000 spectators, the Monumental is still the largest stadium in Ecuador, and was the second-largest in South America, after the Estádio do Maracanã in Rio de Janeiro. The capacity has been reduced to just under 60,000 due to safety concerns like most South American stadiums.

In 1990, under a new president, and with the firm intention of conquering the Copa Libertadores for the first time (and the first time for a team in Ecuador), the club acquired key international players: former Argentine international and World Cup champion in 1986 Marcelo Trobbiani, Argentine international Alberto Acosta, and Uruguayan Marcelo Saralegui. With the inclusion of the foreign players and a batch of young as well as experienced Ecuadorian players, they played a fantastic tournament.

In 1990 Copa Libertadores edition, a dramatic semi-final home and away series, Barcelona beat River Plate of Argentina in a penalty shoot-out, to finally reach the long-awaited final. Unfortunately they would come short, losing against Olimpia of (Paraguay) 2–0 in the away game, and tying 1–1 in the home game. Many considered the referee had affected the outcome in favor of the Paraguayan team. But with the runner up title, they would finally be considered among the best and most respected teams in South America.

In 1992, they put together another great team, beating the previous champions Colo-Colo (Chile) and reaching the Libertadores Cup semi-finals once again, but losing against the powerful Brazilian team of São Paulo, who at the time was coached by Tele Santana. Among their stars, São Paulo had players such as Zetti, Cafu, Raí, Müller and Palhinha.

This decade also proved to show a negative side in the team's history. On 26 December 1993, three days after Barcelona had achieved the second place in the Ecuadorian league and earning a spot in the next Libertadores cup, Ecuadorian striker Carlos Muñoz died in a car accident at the age of 26.

After winning the Ecuadorian league title in 1997 (their last until 2012) with the help of such players as former Bolivian international Marco "El Diablo" Etcheverry, former Colombian international Anthony "El Pipa" De Avila and former Ecuadorian international Agustin "Tin" Delgado, they would go on to play the 1998 Libertadores Cup with mostly old players that seemed to be on their way out. But against all odds, they would reach their second Libertadores Cup final, losing both championship games against Brazilian team Vasco Da Gama, 2–0 in the away game and 2–1 in the home game.

1998 was their last appearance in the Copa Libertadores final as of 2022, ultimately meaning that their intention of capturing the Copa Libertadores that they wanted since the turn of the decade turned out to be a missed opportunity and was disappointing to many fans as they expected to win at least one continental title. The glory of being the first Ecuadorian team instead went to bitter rivals L.D.U. Quito who won the 2008 Copa Libertadores and leaving Barcelona further stings of what could have been.

Barcelona's stadium during a match in 2006.

Barcelona did not win a national title for 15 years since 1997, and participated in only two editions of the Copa Libertadores in the 2000s (decade). Despite the lack of titles in recent years, the club remains among the most successful teams in the league, having managed three Serie A runners-up finishes in the decade. Barcelona continues to be among the top contributors to the Ecuador national team, and remains one of the most popular teams in Ecuador. The derby with crosstown team Emelec, remains the most popular football rivalry in Ecuador.[5]

During November 2007, Eduardo Maruri was elected President of Barcelona for the 2007–11 period. Maruri and Noboa (Barcelona's Vice President) introduced the slogan La Renovación (The Renovation), thereby promising to bring in key international players as well as the best Ecuadorian players and to clean up the mess that had prevented Barcelona from winning the national title.[6] However, the 2009 season was Barcelona's worst season in its history in the Serie A. Such teams as Deportivo Quito, ESPOLI, Deportivo Cuenca and LDU Portoviejo came out and spoke about their concern: if Barcelona were relegated, it would enormously impact those teams' economic situations, since when they would play at home against Barcelona it would almost guarantee a sell-out. (This was because Barcelona had the most fans of any team in Ecuador.[7]) On 3 October 2009, more than 70,000 fans showed up at the Estadio Monumental Banco del Pichincha to support El Idolo del Ecuador so that it would not be relegated to the Serie B. In an intense match, Barcelona defeated LDU Portoviejo 2–0 with goals from José Luis Perlaza (46th minute) and Juan Samudio (90th minute). This allowed Barcelona to remain the only Ecuadorian team that has never played a game in Serie B.[8][9][10]

On 5 November 2009, Barcelona's President, Eduardo Maruri, announced the hiring of a multimedia communications group from Spain, MediaPro, to help them as a consultant and guide them through the new decade in the aspects of advertisement, finance, and sport. This was done with the hope of bringing Barcelona back to international prominence and giving the fans what they most desired, the elusive 14th domestic title.[11][12]

However, Eduardo Maruri resigned the presidency of Barcelona during a surprise press conference on 22 December 2010, stating that he was doing so because of "family issues".[13] Maruri was resigning one year before the scheduled completion of his term. After Maruri resigned, Juan Carlos Estrada was designated as the new President of Barcelona.[14] Estrada also resigned the next day and Alfonso Harb Viteri assumed the presidency. Harb stated that he was going to step down as President and announced that Barcelona's presidential elections would be held on 11 June of the following year.

The businessman Antonio Noboa with his slogan Primero Barcelona, defeated his opponent Jose Herrera and was sworn as the new president of Barcelona SC on June 11, 2011.[15]

During the Noboa era, Barcelona managed to win the 2012 Serie A, ending a 14-year without a title.[16]

Former goalkeeper José Francisco Cevallos assume the presidency of Barcelona on December 13, 2015 against Universidad Católica in Barcelona's home stadium, "El Monumental". His term ended in 2020, but was renewed.[17]

In his tenure, Barcelona won the 2016 Ecuadorian Serie A, qualifying them for the 2017 Copa Libertadores, which they reached the semi-finals for the first time since 1998. This run was a great one, qualifying 2nd in their group after River Plate and alongside Independiente Medellín, and Melgar. In the knockouts, they beat Brazilian Sides Palmeiras in the round of 16 and Botafogo in the Quarterfinals, before losing to eventual champion Grêmio in the Semifinals. His term ended with a gleeful 2020 Ecuadorian Serie A Championship, and then was re-elected Club President. The next year, Barcelona reached the semifinals of the 2021 Copa Libertadores. This run saw Barcelona top a very tough group with 7 time winners Boca Juniors, the previous year's runner-up Santos, and one of the best Bolivian clubs in The Strongest. In the knockouts, they beat Vélez Sarsfield in the Round of 16 and Fluminense in the Quarterfinals before falling to finalists Flamengo in the Semifinals. In the 2022 Ecuadorian Serie A, despite winning the first phase, they fell short of the Championship to first time winners Aucas.

1925–26

1926–42

1942–46

1947–present

The team's traditional colors are yellow and red, with the home kit being all yellow since moorlands era 2015

Prior to that, the teams used to play in black and white kits. For a period early in their history, the team used a kit similar to FC Barcelona's, but after a series of losses in that uniform, the team president swore never to wear those colors again. In the 1940s, yellow was introduced, and would eventually become the team's primary color, replacing white altogether; red would become the secondary color, used in their alternate kit.

El Clásico del Astillero is a match played against Barcelona's old rival Emelec. It was not until August 22, 1943 that the two sides faced each other for the first time, in a Guayaquil League match. Sporting their distinctive yellow jerseys, Los Canarios defeated El Eléctrico 4–3, with Pedro Villalta scoring a late winner for Barcelona. It was a match that would forever be remembered as The Derby of the Posts due to the number of times that the Emelec forwards struck the woodwork.

In 1948, the local derby received a name of its own in a preview in the newspaper El Universo, becoming known forever more as El Clásico del Astillero (The Shipyard Derby).

In 1990, proved to be a very special year in the history of El Clásico del Astillero, with the two sides facing off in a Copa Libertadores quarter-final second leg on August 29. Barcelona de Guayaquil advanced to the semi-finals after a 1–0 win.

The rivalries between these two teams is immense in Ecuador and international that it caught the eye of international filmmaker Filmadora Panamericana and in 1973 a movie was made titled "El derecho de los pobres", starting Spanish-Mexican actor Enrique Rambal, Mexican actor Enrique Rocha and Ecuadorian soccer player Alberto Spencer, proclaimed the best Ecuadorian soccer player of all times, makes his cinema debut.[19]

On social media, the rivalry between the two teams comes up more frequently. The fans take advantage of any slip of the opposite team to create memes and videos to laugh down, especially the day after a game. The most used phrase to highlight the existing rivalry is "Barcelona, tu papá." (English: "Barcelona is your father"), referring to the fact that Barcelona has always occupied a most important hierarchical position than Emelec in many aspects.[20]

This rivalry has gained special significance with the recent success of both teams in Serie A play, with Barcelona winning in 2012, and Emelec winning in 2013 and 2014. The 2014 championship was decided by a 3–0 Emelec win over Barcelona.[21]

As of 25 March, 2023

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 1 GK  ARG Javier Burrai 2 DF  ECU Mario Pineida 3 DF  ARG Luca Sosa 4 DF  URU Carlos Rodríguez 6 DF  ECU Jordan Moran 7 FW  ARG Christian Ortiz (on loan from Tijuana) 8 MF  ECU Gabriel Cortez 10 MF  ECU Damián Díaz (Captain) 11 FW  ECU Fidel Martínez 12 GK  ECU Víctor Mendoza 13 MF  ECU Janner Corozo (on loan from Pachuca) 14 FW  ARG Francisco Fydriszewski 15 DF  ECU Jeison Mina 16 DF  ECU Pedro Perlaza

No. Pos. Nation Player 17 MF  ECU Fernando Gaibor 20 MF  URU Bruno Piñatares 22 MF  BRA Leonai (on loan from Plaza Colonia) 29 DF  ECU Joshué Quiñónez 31 DF  ECU Pedro Pablo Velasco 32 FW  ARG Jonathan Bauman 34 DF  ECU Segundo Portocarrero 36 GK  ECU Alvaro Preciado 41 MF  URU Jesús Trindade (on loan from Pachuca) 70 MF  ECU Jefferson Arce 77 FW  ECU Adonis Preciado 88 MF  ECU Luis Arce – DF  ECU Bryan Caicedo

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player — DF  ECU Bryan Rivera (at C.D. Cuenca until 31 December 2022)

No. Pos. Nation Player — MF  ARG Michael Hoyos (at Independiente del Valle until 31 December 2023) — FW  ECU Carlos Garcés (at Cienciano until 30 June 2023)

The following players were chosen to represent their country at the FIFA World Cup while contracted to Barcelona SC.

List according to each manager that has won a title.[24]

• Julio Kellman (won the 1960 Serie A title)
• Gradín (won the 1963 Serie A title)
• Pablo Ansaldo (won the 1966 Serie A title)
• Otto Vieira (won Serie A titles 1970,71 and 80)
• Hector Morales (won the 1981 Serie A title)
• Luis Santibáñez (won the 1985 Serie A title)
• Roque Gastón Máspoli (won the 1987 Serie A title)
• Miguel Brindisi (won the 1989 Serie A titles)
• Jorge Habegger (won the 1991 Serie A titles)
• Salvador Capitano (won the 1995 Serie A title)
• Rubén Insúa (won the 1997 Serie A title)
• Gustavo Costas (won the 2012 Serie A title)
• Guillermo Almada (won the 2016 Serie A title)
• Fabián Bustos (won the 2020 Serie A title)