Barça celebrate rugby section's centenary at Estadi Olímpic

FC Barcelona celebrated 100 years of their Rugby team on Sunday at the Estadi Olímpic in the run up to Barça v Alavés in La Liga. President Joan Laporta met representatives from the section at a private event in the Directors' Box and after the players' warm up, members of the rugby section went out on to the pitch to receive an ovation from the fans. 

The rugby section at the Club started on 28 July 1924 after several years of initiatives involving the sport. The first game for Barça Rugby came on 21 September of 1924 at the Sant Boi del Llobregat pitch against a from CADCI (Centre Autonomista de Dependents del Comerç i la Indústria) which the blaugranes won 9-5.

The team was one of the first created in the country and Barça Rugby dominated the early Spanish Championship, later to become the Copa del Rey. From 1930 to 1932 there was a run of beating none other than Real Madrid in the final. Barça are the club with most Copa del Rey titles with 16, the last coming in 1985. 

The section has also won the league twice, in 1953 and 1954. In later years success came less regularly but since 2013 Barça Rugby been in the top division in the country and 2019 they came close to adding another Copa del Rey trophy to their collection. This season they reached the semi-finals of the competition.