The Man Who Saved Fc Barcelona

A novel about the remarkable life of the Irishman Patrick O'Connell, appointed as manager of FC Barcelona at the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War in 1936, and generally recognised as the man who saved the club from bankruptcy.

With rare and unrivaled access, bestselling coauthor of Soccernomics and longtime Financial Times journalist Simon Kuper tells the story of how FC Barcelona became the most successful club in the world—and how that era is now ending FC Barcelona is not just the world’s highest grossing sports club, it is simply one of the most influential organizations on the planet. At last count, it had approximately 214 million social media followers, more than any other sports club except Real Madrid CF—and by one earlier measure, more than all thirty-two NFL teams combined. It has more in common with multinational megacompanies like Netflix or small nation-states than it does with most soccer teams. No wonder its motto is “More than a club.” But it was not always so. In the past three decades, Barcelona went from a regional team to a global powerhouse, becoming a model of sustained excellence and beautiful soccer, and a consistent winner of championships. Simon Kuper unravels exactly how this transformation took place, paying special attention to the club’s two biggest stars, Johan Cruyff and Lionel Messi, who is arguably the greatest soccer player of all time. Messi joined Barça at age thirteen and, more than anyone, has been the engine and standard-bearer of Barcelona’s glory. But his era is coming to an end—and with it, a once-in-a-lifetime golden run. This book charts Barça’s rise and fall. Like many world-beating organizations, FC Barcelona closely guards its secrets, granting few outsiders access to the Camp Nou, its legendary home stadium. But after decades of writing about the sport and the club, Kuper was given access to the inner sanctum and the people behind the scenes who strive daily to keep Barcelona at the top. Erudite, personal, and capturing all the latest upheavals, his portrait of this incredible institution goes beyond soccer to understand FC Barcelona as a unique social, cultural, and political phenomenon.

‘A history of modern Spain told through one of world football's most intense rivalries’ Independent ‘Sports Book of the Year’ Sunday Times It’s Messi vs Ronaldo, it’s Catalonia vs Castilla. It’s the nation against the state, freedom fighters vs Franco’s fascists. It’s majestic goals and mesmerising skills, red cards and bench brawls. It’s the best two teams on the planet going face to face and toe to toe. It’s more than a game. It’s a war. It’s Barcelona vs Real Madrid. Only, it’s not that simple. From the wounds left by the civil war to the teams’ recent global domination, historian and expert on Spanish football, Sid Lowe lifts the lid on sport’s greatest rivalry. Lowe has spoken to the biggest names and the forgotten heroes who defined their clubs. Men like Alfredo Di Stéfano and Johan Cruyff as well as the only survivor of the most politically charged game in history, the Barcelona striker who knocked Madrid out of the European Cup for the first time ever, and the president who celebrated his club’s defining moment by taking a midnight dip in the Thames. By exploring the history, politics, culture, economics and language, while never forgetting the drama on the pitch, Lowe demonstrates the symbiotic nature of the relationship between these two football giants. In doing so he reveals the human story behind this explosive rivalry.

'Does culture create competitive advantage? Case closed in this compelling analysis of sporting success. Read it.' – James Kerr, bestselling author of Legacy. In The Barcelona Way, sports psychologist Prof. Damian Hughes draws on exclusive insight into FCB as well as first-hand research from organizational psychology, to set out a method to create your own high-performance culture. At the heart of FCB’s winning culture are a set of principles, epitomized by Pep Guardiola, Johan Cruyff, Lionel Messi and many other FCB legends, which govern how to nurture talent, prepare for change and provide the best environment to build a culture of sustained success. These principles: Big Picture, Arc of Change, Repetition, Cultural Architects, Authentic Leadership are at the heart of FCB’s unprecedented domination of football, and are the key to developing high-performance cultures in any team-based organisation across every industry. The Barcelona Way is a hugely practical must-read that sets out a clear plan, based on the same principles, for you to create a culture of success and get the best of yourself and your team.

This is the first critical, in-depth academic study of FC Barcelona (also known as Barça), one of the world’s great football clubs, exploring the historical, political, cultural and commercial dimensions of this global sporting institution. The book examines why and how the club grew from its genesis as a small sporting organisation in the developing urban landscape of Barcelona in 1899 to become a contemporary giant that has both shaped and transcended football. It considers how globalisation, cultural identity and political ideology can help us to understand the development of Barça, but also how the growth of the phenomenon of FC Barcelona helps us to better understand those forces shaping contemporary global societies. It brings together leading scholars from around the world to examine key themes such as governance, regional and national politics, storytelling, fandom, digital media, branding, commercialisation and sport diplomacy, exploring topics such as the European Super League fiasco and the rise of Lionel Messi as a global icon. It also includes a series of chapters looking at the importance of FC Barcelona around the world, including in Latin America, the United States, Africa and East Asia. This illuminating, multi-disciplinary study of FC Barcelona is essential reading for anybody with an interest in football, Catalonian politics and culture, or the history, politics, culture and business of sport.

Audisee® eBooks with Audio combine professional narration and text highlighting for an engaging read aloud experience! Lionel Messi is one of the best soccer players in the world. He's led his team—Fútbol Club (FC) Barcelona—to several championships, he's won the FIFA Ballon d'Or award five times, and he's been on the cover of the video game EA Sports FIFA four times. Messi is known for his amazing ability to score goals, but he didn't become a soccer superstar without plenty of hard work. Learn how Messi keeps his body fit for the game, what his life is like off the pitch, and more.

This book will give tourists and travellers a description of each of 50 leading destinations from around Europe with a personal explanation offering an insight as to why, and how, these destinations consistently deliver high-quality visitor experiences.In addition to the 36 European destinations featured in Wish You Were Here, this European edition of the book also includes information on West Dorset (UK), Bergamo (Italy), Bordeaux (France), Brda (Slovenia), Vyoske Tatry (Slovakia), Cornwall (UK), San Sebastian (Spain), Podcetrek (Slovenia), Trieste (Italy), The Wadden Sea (Denmark), Cardiff (UK), Basel (Belgium), North Pembrokeshire (UK) and Valletta (Malta).

Written by Terry Stevens.The Stories Behind 50 of the World's Great Destinations.This book will give tourists and travelers a description of each of the 50 destinations with a personal explanation giving an insight as to why, and how, these destinations consistently deliver high quality visitor experiences. It aims to show the visitor how good management and an understanding of the importance of hospitality underpins the success of each destination. Tourists are now very interested in knowing more about how the places they visit are organized and how they get things right.For the tourism professional and future destination managers and marketers, the Professional Edition will have the same core content as the Consumer Edition, exploring the destinations plus a detailed analysis of international best practice in destination management written with deep insight and research supported by extensive bibliography. It will be a major reference book on successful destination management based on my 40 years working in the industry in over 55 countries.- This is not a typical language-driven, promotional bucket-list guidebook. Stevens gives these destinations real world context. He tells us its personality, its mood and not just the reason for being but its reason for resilience, perseverance and ultimate success.' Peter Greenberg, Travel Editor/CBS News