RCD Espanyol de Barcelona

Club History

RCD Espanyol de Barcelona was founded on October 28, 1900, by Ángel Rodríguez as Sociedad Española de Football, making it Spain’s oldest club entirely created by Spanish citizens, adopting the blue-and-white colors of Roger de Llúria and the nickname “Periquitos” (parakeets). Granted royal patronage in 1912, the club won its first Copa del Rey in 1929 and reached the 1988 UEFA Cup final, with a golden era under Javier Clemente in the late 1980s. Relegated and promoted multiple times, Espanyol secured Copas del Rey in 2000 and 2006, and moved to the modern RCDE Stadium (40,000 capacity, opened 2009) in Cornellà. Despite four Copa del Rey titles and consistent La Liga presence until recent struggles, the club remains Barcelona’s proud “other” team, fiercely defending Catalan identity against FC Barcelona.