Primera Liga 2009-10
La Liga de las Estrellas
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The Primera Liga is the jewel in the crown of Spanish football and one of the most glamorous leagues in the world.
Founded in 1928, La Liga de Fútbol Profesional consists of two divisions - Primera and Segunda.
The bank-sponsored Primera División is officially the Liga BBVA but commonly known as just La Liga.
With 31 and 19 Liga titles respectively, Real Madrid and FC Barcelona have long dominated football in Spain, and the 2009-10 season is no exception.
Barça come from completing the most successful season in their history - Liga, Copa del Rey and Champions League in 2009.
Messi, Iniesta, Xavi, Puyol and, of course, Josep Guardiola are just a few of the names behind the most thrilling football played in Europe over the last few years.
Not to be outdone, arch-rivals Real Madrid - under new president Florentino Pérez - have replied by bringing back glamour to the Bernabéu in the shape of the
New Galácticos.
The signings of Cristiano Ronaldo and Kaká guarantee that sparks will fly in the battle to become . . .
. . . Primera Liga Champions 2009-10.
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Liga Standings 2008-09
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1.
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FC Barcelona
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2.
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Real Madrid
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3.
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Sevilla FC
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4.
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Atlético de Madrid
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5.
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Villarreal CF
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6.
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Valencia CF
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7.
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Deportivo Coruña
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8.
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Málaga CF
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9.
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Real Mallorca
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10.
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RCD Espanyol
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11.
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UD Almería
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12.
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Racing Santander
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13.
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Athletic Club
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14.
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Sporting de Gijón
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15.
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CA Osasuna
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16.
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Real Valladolid
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17.
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Getafe CF
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18.
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Xerez CD
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19.
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Real Zaragoza
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20.
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CD Tenerife
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The Big Two
The success of the Primera Liga is mainly down to the two star clubs, FC Barcelona and Real Madrid - the most popular and most successful clubs in the
world, respectively.
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Both Real Madrid and FC Barcelona were founding members of La Liga in 1928 and neither club has ever been relegated to Segunda.
Eighty years of bitter rivalry mean
that the passion of a Barça-Madrid Clásico is unmatched by any other game in the world!
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Barça won the very first Liga in 1929 and, apart from a fallow period in the 60s and early 70s, have always been in contention for the Primera Liga title.
It wasn't until the mid-fifties that Real Madrid came to dominate Spanish and European football - they won five consecutive European Cups from from
1956 and 1960 and 12 out of 16 Ligas between 1954 and
1969.
Their continuing success leaves them with a trophy haul of 31 Primera Liga titles, 10 European Cups and 17 Copas del Rey.
FC Barcelona have won 19 Ligas and 3 Champions Leagues and after last season's treble are the undisputed Cup Kings with 25 Copa del Rey titles.
The Best of the Rest
Two other clubs that have traditionally been up there with the best are Athletic Club de Bilbao and Atlético de Madrid, who were originally twinned.
Atlético de Madrid were founded by a group of Basque students studying in the capital as a satellite of Athletic Club and that's why both clubs wear the
same red and white colours.
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With 9 Ligas, Atlético are the third most successful club in Spain but have always lived under the shadow of their mighty neighbours, Real
Madrid.
Athletic Club, the Pride of the Basque Country, have 6 Ligas to their name, the last title coming in 1984 when they won the
league and cup double.
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Athletic de Bilbao only field Basque players and in these times of globalised big money football generally finish in mid-table positions.
Spain's other footballing giant is Valencia CF also with 6 titles to their name.
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Now in Segunda, Real Sociedad have won two Liga titles and Betis have won one.
After a good 2008-09 and with a title apiece, Sevilla FC and Deportivo de la Coruña will be ones to watch in 2009-10.
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The other club that deserves a special mention is RCD Espanyol.
Espanyol have never won La Liga but are definitely one of Spain's big clubs.
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Much like Atlético de Madrid are often overshadowed by neighbours Real Madrid, Espanyol are in the difficult position of sharing the city of Barcelona with El Barça.
Surprise Contenders
Having qualified for Europe yet again, modest Villarreal CF are really establishing themselves as a force to be reckoned with and a major trophy is bound
to come their way in the near future.
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The bulk of the remaining clubs - Málaga CF, Real Valladolid, Real Mallorca, Racing de Santander, Getafe CF, UD Almería and Sporting de Gijón - are not quite as established as top clubs and
have all spent periods in Segunda.
Although their objective is often staying out of the relegation zone, all are quite capable of giving the big boys a run for their money.
Most seasons
there's an 'equipo revelación' in Primera Liga - a surprise contender that qualifies for Europe.
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The three teams that come up from Segunda this year will also contribute to quality of Primera Liga 2009-2010.
For Xerez CD, this is the first season in Primera in their history but both CD Tenerife and Real Zaragoza are established clubs with a reputation for giving a good
account of themselves
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One of the things that makes Spanish football so exciting are the deep-rooted rivalries that underlie it.
Phil Ball's Morbo: The Story of Spanish Football is the history of the Beautiful Game in Spain.
Full of anecdotes and funny stories as well as good solid
research, it brings alive the poltical, cultural and historical reasons why a Barça-Madrid Clásico is such a grudge match.
He also covers Valencia, Galicia
and Seville and the story of how the British brought football to Spain at the end of the 19th century.
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