FC Premiership

If you've ever participated in organized sports, you've likely heard the familiar adage, "It's not whether you win or lose, it's how you play the game." Futbol Club Barcelona is winning matches, lots of matches, as well as the respect and admiration of soccer fans worldwide precisely because of how they play the game.

Premiership

In international soccer, Futbol Club Barcelona has achieved unparalleled success in recent years. Two years ago, the team became the first ever to to win all six major competitions in a single year: the 2008-09 La Liga, 2008-09 Copa del Rey, 2009 Supercopa de España, 2008-09 UEFA Champions League, 2009 UEFA Super Cup, and 2009 FIFA Club World Cup. Barcelona won the Spanish Premier League again last year and is this season's current leader, as well as a contender for other titles. The team also set a record for 16 straight victories in league games this season. Such statistics certainly warrant a growing fan base, but they only tell part of the story.

Futbol Club Barcelona's style of play is markedly different from other teams. They exhibit an outstanding control of the ball, usually with only one touch. From that base, their game develops through quick, accurate passes and coordinated movement with and without the ball. Triangulations abound and players almost always have several options available when looking to pass. Barcelona consistently dominates matches in terms of possession of the ball and when they lose possession, every player is involved in pressuring the other team in order to recover the ball quickly. Most of Barcelona's goals come as a result of their tremendous passing game, their patience in executing this style of play until a scoring opportunity becomes available, and the unselfishness of their players. Technical precision, accurate passing, coordinated movement, and team play are the priorities of coach Pep Guardiola. From the sideline he brilliantly orchestrates a controlled yet fluid game that is a joy to behold.

It's impossible to discuss how Futbol Club Barcelona plays without examining briefly who is on the field, for these athletes make Barcelona's style of play possible. The three finalists for this year's Ballon d'Or, the trophy awarded to the world's best soccer player, all play for Barcelona: Leo Messi, Xavi Hernández, and Andrés Iniesta. Messi and two other teammates, David Villa and Pedro, comprise three of the top five league scorers so far this season. Messi and teammate Dani Alves lead the league for most assists by a significant margin. While individual talents at other positions are not so easily measured, the fact that Futbol Club Barcelona has a host of star players is readily apparent. Yet they do not play as a group of stars, nor do you find the arrogance or theatrics that characterize some of their peers on other squads. This team has many players who bring prodigious abilities to their positions, but it is how their individual talents serve a greater, collective vision that creates the style of soccer for which Barcelona is becoming renowned worldwide.

Futbol Club Barcelona is proving time and again that it really is about how you play the game, as much for winning matches as for winning fans.

FC Premiership