HISTORY REAL MADRID

After being officially founded in 1902, Real Madrid wasted little time in reeling off four Copa del Rey triumphs between 1905 and 1908. Their first Spanish Championship triumph arrived in the fourth edition of the competition in 1932, and they backed that up with another title the following year.
The 1950s and 60s was truly Real Madrid’s time. The Merengues walked away with 12 titles over the two decades, and also began their love affair with the European Cup. Indeed, they claimed the first edition in 1956, coming from 2-0 down against French club Reims to win 4-3 in true Real Madrid fashion. They could boast the unique talents of Alfredo Di Stefano who made his debut on 23rd September 1953, the actual day he arrived in the city with his wife and daughters to pass a medical.
Ferenc Puskas was another great of this era as Real set about crushing all competition. The duo scored hat-tricks in a 10-1 win over Las Palmas in 1959 and helped the club to multiple European Cups.

High Expectations:

Championship titles were on tap throughout the 70s and 80s, and it was such dominance that led FIFA to vote Real Madrid the most successful club of the 20th century.

Real Madrid are the only club to have a European Cup trophy on-site having won the title five years in a row.

Such an illustrious history naturally means high expectations in the pressure cooker environment of the Bernabeu. Supporters expect to see winning and entertaining soccer, and are not afraid to make their feelings known to the players if expectations are not being met.
Several managers have bitten the dust, despite winning trophies. In 1998, Jupp Heynckes was fired at the end of the season despite winning the European Cup. Even more shockingly, Real decided not to renew the contract of Vicente Del Bosque in 2003 after he had led the club to two European Cups and two Liga titles in four years.

• Founded: 1902
• Home Ground (Capacity): Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid (80,354)
• Nicknames: Merengues
• Home Colors: White
• Top Goalscorer All-Time: Raul Gonzalez (323 goals)
• First Division/La Liga Titles: (31) 1931–32, 1932–33, 1953-54, 1954-55, 1956-57, 1957-58, 1960-61, 1961-62, 1962-63, 1963-64, 1964-65, 1966-67, 1967-68, 1968-69, 1971-72, 1974-75, 1975-76, 1977-78, 1978-79, 1979-80, 1985-86, 1986-87, 1987-88, 1988-89, 1989-90, 1994-95, 1996-97, 2000-01, 2002-03, 2006-07, 2007-08
• Spanish Cup/Copa del Rey Titles: (18) 1904-1905, 1905-1906, 1906-1907, 1907-1908, 1916-1917, 1933-1934, 1935-1936, 1945-1946, 1946-1947, 1961-1962, 1969-1970, 1973-1974, 1974-1975, 1979-1980, 1981-1982, 1988-1989, 1992-1993, 2010-11
• European Cup/Champions League: (9) 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1966, 1998, 2000, 2002
• UEFA Cup: (2) 1985, 1986
• Intercontinental Cup: (3) 1960, 1998, 2002
• European Super Cup: (1) 2002

The Team:

• Current Coach: Jose Mourinho
• Top Goalscorer 2010-2011: Cristiano Ronaldo (53 in all competitions)
• Captain: Iker Casillas
• 2010-2011 League Finish: 2nd