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Politics, Media and FC Barcelona

 

            Media and politics have been intertwined since the printing press was created. In this day and age media has more influence than ever. Society is surrounded by and shaped by the inescapable media enveloped into our daily lives. Media's relationship with politics depends on the country, laws and the people controlling mainstream media. Regardless of location, there is an inexplicable link between politics and media. Now the question is what happens when influential media and politics get together with sports? Media and sports have a long history, but sports and politics? In Spain, more specifically Barcelona, there seems to be a special connection between media, politics and sports. Barcelona's soccer team FC Barcelona has had an impact politically since the times of Franco. .
             Recently FC Barcelona has been receiving international attention as the heart of and representation of Catalan culture, during the Catalan movement for independence from Spain. Originally FC Barcelona was more political than it is today actually; but media today is used on a much wider scale, giving the highly popular team a wider audience and influence. Although the team has tried to stay neutral as the Catalans move towards independence, the games have become the stage for the Catalan protests. FC Barcelona may not be able to pick sides but as Carles Vilarrubi (the Vice President of the soccer club) put it, "Barca shares the DNA of the Catalan society. FC Barcelona lives facing society. So what happens to society affects Barca." What is unique is the attention the Catalan independence movement has gained through its attachment and use of FC Barcelona. FC Barcelona and politics have been entangled since Francoism, but because the media attention Barca already receives, as possibly the worlds best soccer club and Real Madrid's rival, it has more political influence than ever, even though the team itself is technically less political and more cultural.


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