The Other Clásico: Barcelona And Real Madrid’s Rivalry Thrives On The Basketball Court Too

Scores of fans revenge past nan silhouettes of cranes and building activity surrounding Barcelona’s Camp Nou past Friday night. But they weren’t location for nan world celebrated shot stadium. Instead, nan oversea of Barça jerseys was heading for nan club’s hoops arena, nan Palau Blaugrana. There was an expectant but apprehensive buzz successful nan aerial – nan nighttime marked a large occasion: Real Madrid were successful town.

It’s wide accepted that nan biggest rivalry successful hoops is betwixt nan Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics; between them they person won almost half of each championships successful NBA history. The Lakers-Celtics showdowns of nan 1980s went beyond hoops and embodied different Americas: West Coast glitz versus East Coast grit; flashy fastbreak hoops versus fundamentals; and, frankly, though possibly sometimes oversimplistically, Black versus white.

In world basketball, however, location are a fewer rivalries that could contend pinch Lakers v Celtics successful position of taste significance, moreover if nan modular of play does not rather lucifer up. Panathinaikos-Olympiakos successful Greece comes to mind. So excessively does Belgrade’s raucous Red Star-Partizan fixtures and nan fierce Intercontinental Derbies betwixt Istanbul’s Fenerbahçe and Galatasaray. Another that could compete and, successful nan coming years, moreover collide pinch Lakers-Celtics? Last Friday’s game: Barcelona v Real Madrid – basketball’s clásico.

You person almost surely person heard of soccer’s clásico. It’s arguably nan biggest derby successful nan world and attracts around 650m viewers. Like nan Celtics and Lakers, Barcelona and Madrid’s shot and hoops teams are besides nan astir storied successful their leagues. In basketball, they’ve won 58 Spanish convention titles betwixt them and Madrid person dominated Europe complete nan decades to triumph 11 EuroLeague titles, the astir successful nan history of nan continent’s elite competition. (Barcelona person two.)

Tension was building arsenic tip-off approached connected Friday. In nan agelong queues snaking into nan stadium, chants astir Madrid’s history of cheating (in football, basketball, politics, and who knows what else) erupted. Here, hoops is inseparable from shot and nan rivalry lays bare socio-political chasms going backmost not conscionable to nan 1950s aliases 60s, arsenic pinch Lakers-Celtics, but hundreds of years into nan past. Barça shot fans still singing “in, inde, independència!” astatine nan 17:14 infinitesimal of matches to people nan extremity of nan Spanish War of Succession – and pinch it nan autumn of Barcelona and nan abolition of Catalan governmental institutions nether Bourbon absolutist norm – each nan measurement backmost successful 1714. Similarly, chants of of ¡Puta Barça, Puta Catalunya! (Whore Barça, Whore Catalonia!) are still heard astatine Madrid matches.

The 2 clubs person had roles successful Spanish history that ripple done nan modern time rivalry. During nan Spanish Civil War, Josep Sunyol, Barcelona’s president, was executed owed to his pro-Catalan independency views, and his representation lives connected arsenic nan club’s ‘martyr president’. In fact, nan first recorded hoops clásico was played at astir midnight successful Madrid successful May 1942, during nan dictatorship of Francisco Franco, a authorities that championed Real Madrid arsenic a awesome of centralised Spanish nationalism and world sporting ambassadorship. Just a fewer months ago, Madrid fans chanted “Franco, Franco” erstwhile caller Argentinian signing Franco Mastantuono entered nan field, outraging galore Catalans.

The strength of nan shot clásico is besides coming successful basketball’s version. The heyday of nan on-court rivalry was arguably nan Audie Norris-Fernando Martín battles of nan precocious 1980s, wherever nan Lakers-Celtics echoes continue. Madrid’s Martín led Spain to a metallic badge astatine nan 1984 LA Olympics, and Barcelona’s Norris, a erstwhile NBA player, made his ain transatlantic comparison to El País successful 2019: “I ever comparison it to nan Lakers-Celtics rivalry. That was what made hoops turn successful nan US and my conflict pinch Fernando made nan Barça-Madrid rivalry grow.”

Last Friday, nan Palau Blaugrana bleachers began filling up an hr earlier tip-off. Players warmed up, nan squeak of rubber soles filling nan air. Camera crews group up their equipment. The smell of hotdogs wafted done nan stands. A group of excitable teenagers arrived successful Lionel Messi and Lamine Yamal jerseys and searched astir for their seats. This clásico comes astatine a clip of tectonic shifts successful nan scenery of European basketball. The 2 rivals look disconnected successful EuroLeague, though reports suggest they could move to a projected NBA-run European convention successful nan coming years. The NBA is reportedly considering different awesome cities specified arsenic Milan, Munich, Berlin, Manchester, London, and Paris and targeting a 2027 motorboat date.

Real Madrid players be a hoops crippled against Barcelona successful 2023. Photograph: Europa Press Sports/Europa Press/Getty Images

In Europe, hoops teams are often divisions of nan shot club. The Spanish Basketball Federation has itself described Madrid and Barcelona arsenic nan “heirs to their shot rivalry”. Some clubs person different sporting divisions beyond shot and basketball. Here successful nan arena nan jerseys of retired Barcelona greats from nan basketball, handball and futsal teams statement nan walls, and nan corridors of nan Palau Blaugrana are plastered pinch photos of prima players from crossed nan Barça brand. On court, nan faint outline of futsal and lucky markings are visible connected nan hardwood.

This multi-sport nine exemplary whitethorn soon go much acquainted to Americans. Whether by including pre-established giants for illustration Real Madrid, Barcelona aliases Bayern Munich, aliases by creating hoops teams for shot powerhouses – reports claim Milan, Chelsea and Manchester City could beryllium progressive – multi-sport clubs would astir apt person a beingness successful immoderate NBA-Europe league.

Last Friday, nan wider Barça family were successful attendance. Club president Joan Laporta arrived and started shaking hands. Players from nan cities’ shot clubs – including Real’s Jude Bellingham, Vinícius Júnior and Aurélien Tchouaméni – often attend, and respective players from Barça’s handball squad were present. High successful nan bleachers, Barça’s hardcore fans, nan Dracs 1991, were already connected their feet, whistling, chanting pinch nan strength of shot ultras. As tip-off approached, nan bleachers filled pinch Barça and Catalan colours, a wall of blue-and-garnet streaked pinch nan reddish and yellowish of nan location flag, nan Senyera, and nan pro-independence Estelada. There whitethorn person been arsenic galore shot jerseys arsenic hoops jerseys. And successful Europe, galore fans travel some their club’s shot and hoops teams. Madrid are nary exception: a mini but large travelling conception filled up connected nan acold side. Their muffled chants echoed crossed nan stadium earlier being drowned retired by Barça fans reestablishing homecourt advantage.

Tip-off yet arrived and nan Palau Blaugrana erupted into ear-splitting whistles and roars. On nan rosters were Madrid’s Alex Len, making his debut, arsenic good arsenic Trey Lyles and Facu Campazzo, each ex-NBA players. Madrid person 9 erstwhile NBA players, associated highest successful nan EuroLeague, according to Basket News data. Barça person six, notably Tomas Satoransky and Jan Vesely.

That’s unsurprising. Real Madrid and Barça’s hoops teams person agelong been location to apical talent. For galore US NBA fans, however, their astir nonstop relation pinch Madrid is astir apt Luka Dončić, nan Slovenian superstar and apt early NBA MVP who signed a five-year statement pinch Madrid erstwhile he was 13 years old.

The Dracs bounced up and down, urging Barça on. But Madrid came retired hot, hitting 5 early three-pointers. Madrid’s Chuma Okeke, a five-year NBA vet, threw up a dream from wrong his ain half astatine nan buzzer and saw it sink, adding to nan emotion that Madrid couldn’t miss. Nonetheless, nan ambiance stayed tense, soccer-like, deafening, and was awash pinch furious anti-Madrid chants arsenic nan Barça fans proceed pinch a relentless wall of noise.

Later successful nan crippled nan Madrid lead stretched to 17 and Barça fans began waving achromatic handkerchiefs to show their discontent. Lyles successful peculiar puts connected a silky soft performance, showcasing one-on-one skills much communal successful style connected nan different broadside of nan pond. When nan last buzzer sounded, Madrid had completed a 101-92 roadworthy win, their ninth consecutive clásico victory. But could it beryllium 1 of nan past successful EuroLeague?

It seems apt that we could soon spot clásico games under nan NBA logo. Perhaps, 1 day, we could moreover spot Boston and Barcelona aliases LA and Madrid look disconnected successful cross-continental competition. With hoops perchance heading for its biggest ever shake-up, who knows? Whatever happens, for Madrid and Barça fans it’ll beryllium a agelong measurement from that midnight crippled backmost successful 1942 but ne'er excessively acold removed from nan history and authorities of nan derby – wherever they play, successful immoderate league, nan biggest crippled of nan play will ever beryllium el clásico.