When World's Collide

A surprise game between Barcelona and Blackpool for the farewell of Les Corts.

Rightly or wrongly, I am fascinated by Facebook groups. They are a tapestry of the UK social fabric or to put slightly more crass, a digital zoo combining the best and brightest with some of the downright most bizarre folk that walk amongst us. They are a listing of everything from conspiracy theories, Parish council minutes and the sale of anything from properties to salt and pepper pots. But once in a while, they offer up a gem that draws you in and offers you a bit of history you were never even aware of…

If you’re not already aware, as well as being a supporter of Spanish football, I am also a supporter of Blackpool FC and love every part of being from the seaside town that can sometimes carry a bad reputation. Whilst I was scrolling through my Facebook feed, a post caught my eye that instantly grabbed my attention as my two worlds collided.

22nd May 1957 - Barcelona 3-3 Blackpool

This was something I was never aware of from my time supporting Blackpool or following Spanish football and subsequently, there isn’t also a lot written about the match up from either side. However, what makes this game really interesting is that it was one of the final games to be played by Barcelona at their iconic home estadio of Camp de Les Corts.

Whilst the fortunes of Blackpool and Barcelona couldn’t really be further a part nowadays, back in 1957 they were a lot more closely matched than you would think. The 1950’s were the Golden Era for the Seasiders, appearing in 3 FA Cup finals with 5 years since the post-war restart, as well as achieving their highest ever league finish of 2nd in the top division, runners up to the Busby Babes of Manchester United in 1956. Three years earlier they had also won one of those 3 FA Cup finals they contested, arguably one of the greatest finals the competition had ever seen. Coined ‘The Matthews Final’ after the influencial display from the Tangerines tricky winger, it was Stan Mortensen who would prove decisive in the final as his hat-trick of goals helped them edge out Bolton by 4 goals to 3. Under the stewardship of Joe Smith, Blackpool were not just a team making up the numbers in this friendly, they were equals with one of the crown jewels of Spanish football.

Barcelona were also obviously footballing royalty too. The inaugural champions of La Liga back in 1929, the 1950s were also the beginning of a Golden Era for the Blaugrana, as they began to dominate La Liga as well as win multiple Copa del Generalisimos (now the Copa del Rey) including one just before this fixture in 1957, beating city-rivals Espanyol at Montjuic. The squad was starting to fill up with stars and with some of the best around Europe. Players with now legendary statuses such as the Brazilian Evaristo, a young Luis Suarez and Hungarian powerhouse Laszlo Kubala were amongst the squad. The two former would play a part in the game against Blackpool at Les Corts, lining up against the likes of Sir Stan and Jimmy Armfield.

Whilst the record of the goalscorers of Blackpool appear to be lost to the sands of time, the records on Barcelona’s archive tell us at least half the story of how great this exhibition match must have been to watch, with the game ending 3-3.

Ramon Villaverde opened the scoring for the Catalans - with the Uruguayan a mainstay in Domènec Balmanya’s team. The Montevideo native had arrived from Millonarios in Colombia a couple of seasons before. The real drama would occur right at the end, with the Seasiders leading Barcelona 3-2 going into the final moments of the game and much like the decades to follow, Barcelona requiring a little bit of Brazilian magic to avoid a loss. Evaristo is rightly regarded as one of the club’s greatest pieces of business and his goalscoring exploits have earned him hallowed status in the corridors of the Camp Nou. It is widely believed that this game against Blackpool could have actually been his debut game for the club, as he had only joined Barcelona following the conclusion of his commitments in South America. The Brazilian came to the attention Barcelona secretary Josep Samitier following his 5 goals for Brazil in their demolition of Colombia in the 1957 South American Championship. Further scouting during Brazil’s qualifying campaign for the 1958 World Cup saw him trade Flamengo for Barcelona and lining up against Blackpool a month later. His equaliser in the 83rd minute, one of the first of many he’d score for the club, rescued a draw in a farewell game to Les Corts.

Barcelona leaving Les Corts was as symbolic as it was practical. Yes, the reason for the move was mainly down to the fact that the club were unable to expand their existing ground beyond the capacity of 60,000, but it was also a stadium that will have held a lot of mixed sentiments for people in the city. Whilst being a stage for the club to launch it’s successes in the 1920’s, it was also shut down by dictator Primo de Rivera after the Spanish national anthem was jeered and ‘God Save the King’ cheered during a visit from the British Marine Band in 1925. This saw the dictator accuse Barcelona Founder and President, Joan Gamper of inciting Catalan Nationalism and he was forced into exile and Les Corts was closed for a period of time. The stadium would also become a military camp during the Spanish Civil War and following the Fall of Barcelona to the nationalists, it became closely monitored by the Franco regime. During the first game when Les Corts was reopened, it saw many speeches given by officials from various military authorities, proclaiming that the club would no longer be used as a symbol for anti-Spanish sentiment and that the club would become a Spanish sports icon under the new regime - all whilst the flags of Nationalist Spain, Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany waved in the breeze.

So whilst the final whistle on the 22nd May 1957 wouldn’t be celebrated for winning 3 points or the lifting of a trophy, it would be one of the last times Barcelona would ever play at Les Corts. For me personally, this will always be fascinating that one of the final teams to ever play in a stadium so steeped in history, glory as well as dark history would be my own beloved hometown of Blackpool, that went toe-to-toe with one of the finest Barcelona sides in history and is a testament to the gems you can find by mindlessly scrolling through the Metaverse.

If you want to hear more stories like this, then definitely give Outside Write (Chris Lee) a follow and read his book, The Defiant. We spoke to him in one of this season’s episodes about Football and Fascism. Check it out!