champions

The Catalans are in California for the first friendly of the 2015/16 preseason in their debut appearance in the International Champions Cup. The Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California is the venue for FC Barcelona’s first match of the 2015/16 preseason, which kicks off at 8.00pm on Tuesday local time and early Wednesday morning back in Barcelona at 5.00am CET. A crowd of over 90,000 is expected to watch as the Catalans face current Major League Soccer (MLS) champions Los Angeles Galaxy in the first of their four games in the International Champions Cup. Three of those games are being played in the USA. After Galaxy, Barça will take on Manchester United on Saturday and Chelsea on Tuesday.

At around 2.00pm local time on Sunday afternoon (11.00pm CET) Barça landed at Los Angeles airport following a twelve hour direct flight from Barcelona. The blaugranes had left at 11.00am CET for the United States after a week of training prior to their pre-season tour across the Atlantic. California welcomed FC Barcelona with cloudy skies but warm temperatures with Los Angeles being the first of three US cities that Barça will visit during their stay. In the City of Angels, the team checked into the plush Ritz-Carlton, Marina del Rey. Luis Enrique and Andrés Iniesta gave the team's first press conference of the tour at the hotel, followed by Barça's first training session at the StubHub Center in Carson.

Barça complete historic second treble with convincing victory in Berlin.FC Barcelona rode goals from Ivan Rakitic and Luis Suárez, and an injury-time clincher by Neymar Jr to claim the 2014/15 UEFA Champions League title on Saturday night at the Olympiastadion in Berlin, Germany. The victory gives FC Barcelona their fourth Champions League title in the last 10 years — their fifth in team history — and an unprecedented second treble, adding a layer of reinforced concrete to the Catalans' already rock-solid status as a dynasty for the ages.

Messi (2) and Neymar score as FC Barcelona claim 27th cup title and move one step closer to historic treble. Two down, one to go. FC Barcelona confidently disposed of Athletic Bilbao 3-1 in Saturday’s Spanish Cup Final at the Camp Nou and can claim a historic treble if they can repeat the trick against Juventus in Berlin next Saturday. Messi scored the second and third, with Neymar getting the one in between, and Williams’ late header was little more than some consolation for Athletic’s swatches of travelling supporters.

Camp Nou was jubilant for the 2014/15 La Liga title celebration and farewell to Xavi Hernández. Messi net two for Barça but Depor pulled both back with second-half strikes from Lucas and Salomão. Saturday afternoon was the perfect opportunity for FC Barcelona to enjoy a well-deserved rest stop. Nearing the end of a pleasant ten-month journey and just six days after one its biggest highlights, the time had come to pull off the highway, enjoy the scenery and — with the end of the road on the horizon and as visible as ever — refuel for the final two stops.It was a day for contentment, delight, and elation, an occasion to celebrate the 2014/15 La Liga title. But it was also a moment for goodbyes, the ones that nobody likes to make, the time to bid a final farewell to Xavi Hernández, one of the perennial fixtures of this barnstorming band of first-class footballers, who recently told his buddies that this year’s trip would be his last.

The midfielder announces he's leaving Barça at the end of the season, after 17 years with the first team. "I'd like to announce that I'm leaving Barça after this season. The decision is definitive yet difficult. I think now is the time to leave, that's the way I feel.” Thus, with those words and raw emotion, Xavi Hernández, the greatest midfielder in FC Barcelona history, made his farewell to the club of his life.He continued: "It was the right decision to stay this year. I still feel important [to the team], but I think it's time. I need a change of scenery. I signed a contract with Al-Sadd [in Qatar] for two seasons and I have a very exciting project at the Aspire Academy. It's the ideal place to continue training."

A brilliant goal from Leo Messi hands the blaugranes the win that they needed to claim their 23rd Spanish League title. A year ago, Atlético Madrid won the league title with a 1-1 draw at the Camp Nou and tonight Barça returned the favour and brought the trophy back home with a 0-1 win at the Vicente Calderón, as they took the first leg of their possible treble with a game to spare.As the second half ticked away, Real Madrid went one up against Espanyol, meaning Barça needed a goal to take the title this weekend and on 65 minutes, Alba worked the ball inside to Messi who played a one-two with Pedro and tucked it home with his left peg through a forest of legs. A brilliant goal fit for La Liga Champions! One down, two to go, as the Spanish Cup and the Champions League final await!

Two first half goals from Neymar are enough to ensure Barça reach the final in Berlin with a convincing 5-3 aggregate. Barça booked their place in the 2014/15 Champions League Final in Berlin, despite losing 3-2 on the night in Munich. A stunning first half when Neymar scored twice and Ter Stegen pulled off some breath-taking saves to virtually put the tie out of Bayern’s reach was followed by a more subdued 45 minutes that saw Bayern pull a couple back for a pyrrhic victory on the night, but a 5-3 defeat over the two legs.It’ll be Barça who are back on German turf next month when they bid for their fifth Champions League trophy.

Less than a week ago a superb second half from the blaugranes at Camp Nou gave them a 3-0 victory over the German champions in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final. Two exquisite goals from Leo Messi in his 100th game in Europe for the blaugranes and an injury time effort from Neymar mean that Pep Guardiola’s Bayern side have it all to do in the second leg in the Allianz Arena in Munich which kicks off at 8.45pm CET. Barça coach Luis Enrique decided to take his entire first team squad plus three players from the B squad, Munir, Sandro and Sergi Samper, to Munich. Jérémy Mathieu was included in that 26 man list after receiving the medical all clear after Sunday’s training session. Bayern boss Pep Guardiola still has plenty of injury headaches before the return leg at home to Barça. Arjen Robben, David Alaba, Franck Ríbery and Holger Badstuber all missed the defeat in Barcelona last week and they will also sit out the second leg

The Germans held out for 77 minutes, then two goals from Messi and one from Neymar secured a spectacular 3-0 win. It was proving to be a frustrating evening for FC Barcelona, with chance after chance going begging against Pep Guardiola’s well organised defence. But the last quarter of an hour produced a dramatic turn of events. Two fantastic goals from Messi suddenly put the Catalans in command, and a third in injury time from Neymar practically puts Barça on the flight to Berlin. There’s still the Allianz Arena to come next week, but with a 3-0 lead to defend, Barça are very much in pole position!

Leo Messi spoke to a packed press room this Tuesday morning ahead of Wednesday’s Champions League clash with Bayern and explained: “I’m really motivated by this game, for what it means and because we face a great team”. The Argentinean was cautious in his press conference, but admitted: "we are feeling good about things", at this key point in the campaign. Bayern is a team managed by Pep Guardiola of course, which gives an added edge, as does the memory of defeat to the Germans at this same stage two seasons ago, but Messi insisted: “it’s been a while since that game now and we are coming into it in a different situation  - this will be a different tie. There can’t be a favourite at this stage of the competition, we are both two big teams. There’s pressure, but we are both obliged to win”.

Luis Suárez's hat trick leads the onslaught as Barça overcome arid conditions to win big in the south of Spain. Lionel Messi adds a brace, while Ivan Raktic, Gerard Piqué, and Neymar chip in one apiece. The victory keeps FC Barcelona two points clear at the top of the league table — with just three games remaining — after Real Madrid kept pace with a 3–2 win at Sevilla on Saturday night. It was no surprise that Saturday’s match at the Nuevo Arcángel in Córdoba, Spain, played on a lush oasis of green turf in one of the driest regions of the Iberian Peninsula, actually did take place under conditions likely to be found in the middle of a desert. Although the Andalusian climate is notoriously arid and hot — especially in the summer — the league encounter between hosts Córdoba FC and their northern visitors FC Barcelona featured unseasonably high temperatures — 31ºC / 88ºF at kick-off — scorching sunshine, and bone-dry humidity levels.

The stage is set and the semi-finals for the 2014/15 UEFA Champions League promises to be one for the ages. Friday's draw in Nyon paired off Barça with Bayern Munich and Juventus with Real Madrid in the final four of Europe's top club competition. The first leg will be played at Camp Nou on 6 May and the second leg will be at Allianz Arena on 12 May. Both games are set for 8.45pm. Luis Enrique's squad will be going up against their ex-coach Pep Guardiola — who led the Catalans from 2008 to 2012 — in a high-profile knockout series that pits two teams with wide-open attacking styles and that should produce a pair of very entertaining football matches, regardless of who comes out on top.

Two first half goals from Neymar were enough to book Barça a spot in Friday’s Champions League semi-final draw, as Luis Enrique’s side denied the French champions any chance of a comeback from last week’s 1-3 win in Paris with a performance that combined champagne moments and cool headed determination. Luis Enrique’s side got a 5-1 aggregate win over PSG.

Barça are just a possible 90 minutes away from a place in the semi-finals of this season’s Champions League. Standing between them and the last four are a PSG side who will have to overcome a 3-1 deficit from the first leg if they are to upset the odds and take their place in Friday’s draw in Nyon, Switzerland. The blaugranes trained on Monday for the final time before the second leg against the French League champions with Iniesta having received the medical all clear. The midfielder is included among 23 players named for the match. Jérémy Mathieu trained on his own in Barça’s final session after picking up a knock against Valencia on Saturday, but he is also included, as are Dani Alves, who missed the win in Paris due to suspension and Thomas Vermaelen, despite not receiving medical clearance.