{"id":70922,"date":"2016-07-15T13:05:05","date_gmt":"2016-07-15T11:05:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/?p=70922"},"modified":"2016-06-12T13:29:36","modified_gmt":"2016-06-12T11:29:36","slug":"soccer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/soccer\/","title":{"rendered":"A lesson on Spanish football"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Are you a newly inaugurated <strong>football fan<\/strong>? Here are some facts you should note down before seeing your fist game at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/visit-barcelonas-iconic-camp-nou\/\" target=\"_blank\">Camp Nou<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_17 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-grey\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class=\"ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1\"><li class=\"ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2\"><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/soccer\/#La_Liga\" title=\"La Liga\">La Liga<\/a><\/li><li class=\"ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2\"><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/soccer\/#The_Spanish_Players\" title=\"The Spanish Players\">The Spanish Players<\/a><\/li><li class=\"ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2\"><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/soccer\/#Tiki-taka\" title=\"Tiki-taka\">Tiki-taka<\/a><\/li><li class=\"ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2\"><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/soccer\/#The_place_to_be_when_they_win\" title=\"The place to be when they win\">The place to be when they win<\/a><\/li><li class=\"ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2\"><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/soccer\/#Football_en_Espanol\" title=\"Football en Espa\u00f1ol\">Football en Espa\u00f1ol<\/a><\/li><li class=\"ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2\"><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/soccer\/#Last_but_not_least_Barca\" title=\"Last but not least: Bar\u00e7a!\">Last but not least: Bar\u00e7a!<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"La_Liga\"><\/span>La Liga<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<div id=\"attachment_70973\" style=\"width: 310px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-70973\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-70973\" src=\"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/football-ball-sport-soccer-play-green-field-kick-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"Photo via Visualhunt\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-70973\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Photo via Visualhunt<\/p><\/div>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/La_Liga\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">La Liga<\/a> is the professional association football division of the <strong>Spanish<\/strong> football league system. It is officially named Liga BBVA (BBVA League) due to sponsorship agreements. It is comprised of 20 teams including the clubs <strong>Real Madrid<\/strong> and <strong>FC Barcelona<\/strong>. Do these two teams sound familiar? They certainly should! Throughout history, 60 teams have competed in <strong>La Liga<\/strong> since its beginnings and out of those nine teams have been crowned champions, with Real Madrid winning the title a record 32 times and Barcelona 24 times.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_Spanish_Players\"><\/span>The Spanish Players<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Spain_national_football_team\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">The Spanish national team<\/a> is full to the brim with talent, some top names to familiarize yourself with are:<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Andr\u00e9s Iniesta \u2013 Position: Midfielder, Club: FC Barcelona<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Iker Casillas (aka \u201cEl Santo\u201d) \u2013 Position: Goalkeeper, Club: Real Madrid<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Sergio Ramos \u2013 Position: Defender, Club: Real Madrid<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Cesc Fabregas \u2013 Position: Midfielder, Club: Chelsea<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Gerard Pique \u2013 Position: Defender, Club: FC Barcelona<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">David Silva \u2013 Position: Midfielder, Club: Manchester City<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Tiki-taka\"><\/span>Tiki-taka<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The style of play used by the team is Tiki-taka (spelled tiqui-taca in Spanish; reports vary on the meaning of this word either being \u2018touch touch\u2019 or \u2018tick tack\u2019 to describe the quick style of play). The <strong>players<\/strong> are not positioned in a traditional <strong>football<\/strong> <strong>formation<\/strong> but rather the whole team is fluid and free to move. The passing is short and quick,\u00a0 with the aim being to work the ball through various channels and maintain possession.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_place_to_be_when_they_win\"><\/span>The place to be when they win<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<div id=\"attachment_70925\" style=\"width: 310px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-70925\" class=\"wp-image-70925 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/spanish-football-2-300x207.jpg\" alt=\"spanish-football-2\" width=\"300\" height=\"207\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-70925\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Photo by Marc Puig i P\u00e9rez via Visualhunt.com \/ CC BY-NC-ND<\/p><\/div>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Whenever the Spanish national team wins, the people of <strong>Spain<\/strong> fill the streets to celebrate. Pay attention next time a game is on\u00a0when <strong>victory<\/strong> ensures you will hear <strong>fireworks<\/strong>, horns, and loud cheers filling the neighbourhoods.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">In Madrid go to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.co.uk\/maps\/place\/Plaza+de+Cibeles\/data=!4m2!3m1!1s0xd422884b6a63843:0x6a54857cd288eda8?sa=X&amp;ved=0ahUKEwiypcat7ZLNAhWEDMAKHfplC2kQ8gEIggEwDw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">fountains like Cibeles<\/a> (for Real Madrid victories) or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.co.uk\/maps\/place\/Fuente+de+Neptuno\/@40.4152692,-3.6963568,17z\/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0xd422882e703708b:0xaaed4254d9f36ea0!8m2!3d40.4152651!4d-3.6941628\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">Neptuno<\/a> (for Atl\u00e9tico de Madrid victories). In Barcelona, the Red Tide (a nickname for Spanish fans dressed in red) go to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.co.uk\/maps\/place\/Font+de+Canaletes\/@41.385146,2.1679857,17z\/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x12a4a2f6babf6b0f:0x85adb6d3849fa7b7!8m2!3d41.385142!4d2.1701797\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">Canaletas Fountain<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Football_en_Espanol\"><\/span>Football en Espa\u00f1ol<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Here are a couple of terms to get you started:<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Gol \u2013 Goal<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Fuera de juego \u2013 Offside<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Tanda de penaltis \u2013 Penalty shoot-out<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Tiempo a\u00f1adido \u2013 Extra time<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Tiro libre (falta) \u2013 Free kick<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Saque de esquina \u2013 Corner kick<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Last_but_not_least_Barca\"><\/span>Last but not least: Bar\u00e7a!<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The <strong>Bar\u00e7a<\/strong> <strong>team<\/strong> has a truly <strong>Catalan<\/strong> <strong>culture<\/strong> with the motto &#8220;M\u00e9s que un club&#8221; (More than a club). Bar\u00e7a is one of the most famous football teams in the world. No matter which country you visit, if it\u2019s football season you will likely see supporters wearing the blue and red stripes of their uniform; this club has no borders when it comes to admirers. It is said that no side passes the ball more often or more accurately than Bar\u00e7a, they are masters of tiki-taka.<\/p>\n<div style=\"display: none;\"\n    class=\"kk-star-ratings kksr-valign-bottom kksr-align-left \"\n    data-id=\"70922\"\n    data-slug=\"\">\n    <div class=\"kksr-stars\">\n    <div class=\"kksr-stars-inactive\">\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\" data-star=\"1\">\n            <div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 25px; height: 25px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\" data-star=\"2\">\n            <div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 25px; height: 25px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\" data-star=\"3\">\n            <div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 25px; height: 25px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\" data-star=\"4\">\n            <div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 25px; height: 25px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\" data-star=\"5\">\n            <div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 25px; height: 25px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n    <div class=\"kksr-stars-active\" style=\"width: 150px;\">\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\">\n            <div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 25px; height: 25px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\">\n            <div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 25px; height: 25px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\">\n            <div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 25px; height: 25px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\">\n            <div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 25px; height: 25px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n            <div class=\"kksr-star\">\n            <div class=\"kksr-icon\" style=\"width: 25px; height: 25px;\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n    <div class=\"kksr-legend\">\n            <strong class=\"kksr-score\">5<\/strong>\n        <span class=\"kksr-muted\">\/<\/span>\n        <strong>5<\/strong>\n        <span class=\"kksr-muted\">(<\/span>\n        <strong class=\"kksr-count\">1<\/strong>\n        <span class=\"kksr-muted\">\n            vote        <\/span>\n        <span class=\"kksr-muted\">)<\/span>\n    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Are you a newly inaugurated football fan? Here are some facts you should note down before seeing your fist game at Camp Nou. Table of Contents La LigaThe Spanish PlayersTiki-takaThe place to be when they winFootball en Espa\u00f1olLast but not least: Bar\u00e7a! La Liga La Liga is the professional association football division of the Spanish [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":86,"featured_media":70923,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[4350],"tags":[4389,4643,4644,4642],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70922"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/86"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=70922"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70922\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":70974,"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70922\/revisions\/70974"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/70923"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=70922"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=70922"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=70922"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}