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Group A

Chelsea


Full name: Chelsea Football Club
Nickname(s):The Blues
Founded: 10 March 1905
Ground Stamford Bridge,Fulham, London (capacity: 41,837)
Owner: Roman Abramovich
Chairman: Bruce Buck
Interim manager: Rafael Benítez
League: Premier League
2011–12: Premier League, 6th

Chelsea Football Club is an English football club based in Fulham, London. Founded in 1905, they play in the Premier League and have spent most of their history in the top tier of English football. Their home is the 41,837-seat Stamford Bridge stadium, where they have played since their establishment.

Chelsea had their first major success in 1955, when they won the league championship, and won various cup competitions during the 1960s, 1970s, 1990s and 2000s. Overall, Chelsea have won four league titles, seven FA Cups, four League Cups and four FA Community Shields. The club have also been successful in continental competitions, winning two UEFA Cup Winners' Cups, one UEFA Super Cup and one UEFA Champions League title. In 2009–10, the club won their first "Double" and in 2012 became the first London club to win the UEFA Champions League.

Chelsea's regular kit colours are royal blue shirts and shorts with white socks. The club's crest has been changed several times in attempts to re-brand the club and modernise its image. The current crest, featuring a ceremonial lion rampant regardant holding a staff, is a modification of the one introduced in the early 1950s. The club has sustained the fifth highest average all-time attendance in English football. Their average home gate for the 2011–12 season was 41,478, the sixth highest in the Premier League. In April 2012 it was ranked by Forbes Magazine as the seventh most valuable football club in the world, at £473 million ($761 million). Since 2003, Chelsea have been owned by Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich.


Paris Saint-Germain


Full name: Paris Saint-Germain Football Club
Nickname(s): PSG, Paris SG, Les Rouge-et-Bleu, Les Parisiens
Founded: 12 August 1970
Ground: Parc des Princes (capacity: 48,712)
Owner: Qatar Investment Authority
President: Nasser Al-Khelaifi
Manager: Carlo Ancelotti
League: Ligue 1
2011–12: Ligue 1, 2nd

Paris Saint-Germain Football Club, also known simply as Paris Saint-Germain and familiarly as Paris SG or PSG is a professional association football club based in Paris, France. The club was founded on 12 August 1970, thanks to the merger of Paris FC and Stade Saint-Germain. PSG has been playing in the Ligue 1 since 1974, the current championship record, and is one of the most prestigious outfits in French football having won two League titles, eight French Cups, three League Cups and two Trophées des Champions. PSG, along with Olympique de Marseille, is one of only two French clubs to have won a major European trophy, claiming the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup in 1996. PSG was named IFFHS World's Club Team of the Year in 1994 and ranked 1st in the UEFA Team Ranking in 1998. The capital club is the only French club to ever achieve these honours. PSG is currently ranked 16th in the IFFHS and 46th in the UEFA Team Ranking.

The Parc des Princes, with a capacity of 48,712 seats, has been Paris Saint-Germain's home since 1973. The Camp des Loges has been operating as a training centre for the club since 1974. The Tournoi de Paris has been hosted by PSG at the Parc des Princes since 1975. PSG's crest features a red silhouette of the Eiffel Tower with the white royal cradle of Louis XIV between its legs on a blue background with white edging. The crest inspired Daniel Hechter to design the 'historical' shirt of the club: blue with a red central vertical bar framed by white edgings. PSG presented its official anthem and mascot in 2010. Allez Paris Saint-Germain, to the tune of "Go West" by Pet Shop Boys, was released as the official anthem before every match at the Parc des Princes. The lyrics of "Go West" were rewritten following suggestions made by the fans. Germain the lynx was unveiled as the new mascot of the capital club. PSG Ladies has been the female section of the club since 1991.

Qatar Investment Authority became the sole shareholder of Paris Saint-Germain after purchasing the remaining 30% stake held by Colony Capital and Butler Capital Partners in 2012. QIA had already bought 70% of Colony's controlling stake in PSG during 2011. The transfer price of the balance of Colony's shares put the club's overall value at €100m. PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi announced that he expected to invest €100m on the transfer market in the years to come to build a strong team. Following QIA's takeover, Paris Saint-Germain became the richest club in France and one of the richest clubs in the world. The capital club shares an intense rivalry with Olympique de Marseille and contest the most notorious football match in France, known as Le Classique. PSG is the second best-supported football club in France after arch-rivals Marseille. Paris Saint-Germain's average home gate for the 2011–12 season was 42,892, the highest in Ligue 1. "Ici c'est Paris" is one of PSG's most popular mottos.


Manchester City


Full name: Manchester City Football Club
Nickname(s): City, The Citizens, The Sky Blues, The Blues
Founded: 1880 as St Mark's (West Gorton). On 16 April 1894, the name was changed to Manchester City.
Ground: City of Manchester Stadium, (capacity: 47,726)
Owner: Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan
Chairman: Khaldoon Al Mubarak
Manager: Roberto Mancini
League: Premier League
2011–12: Premier League, 1st

Manchester City Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Manchester. Founded in 1880 as St. Mark's (West Gorton), they became Ardwick Association Football Club in 1887 and Manchester City in 1894. The club has played at the City of Manchester Stadium since 2003, having played at Maine Road from 1923. The club's most successful period was in the late 1960s and early 1970s when they won the League Championship, FA Cup, League Cup and European Cup Winners' Cup under the management team of Joe Mercer and Malcolm Allison.

After losing the 1981 FA Cup Final, the club went through a period of decline, culminating in relegation to the third tier of English football for the only time in their history in 1998. Having regained Premier League status, the club was purchased in 2008 by Abu Dhabi United Group and became one of the wealthiest in the world. In 2011, Manchester City qualified for the Champions League and won the FA Cup. In 2012, the club won the Premier League, their first league title for forty-four years.


Tottenham Hotspur


Full name: Tottenham Hotspur Football Club
Nickname(s): The Spurs, The Lilywhites
Founded: 1882; 129 years ago (as Hotspur F.C.)
Ground: White Hart Lane, Tottenham, London (capacity: 36,310)
Owner: ENIC International Ltd.
Chairman: Daniel Levy
Manager: André Villas-Boas
League: Premier League
2011–12: Premier League, 4th

Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Spurs, is an English football club based in Tottenham, London, that plays in the Premier League. The club's home stadium is White Hart Lane.

Founded in 1882, Tottenham won the FA Cup for the first time in 1901, making it the only non-League club to do so since the formation of the Football League. Tottenham was the first club in the 20th century to achieve the League and FA Cup Double, winning both competitions in the 1960–61 season. After successfully defending the FA Cup in 1962, in 1963 it became the first British club to win a UEFA club competition – the European Cup Winners' Cup. In 1967 it won the FA Cup for a third time in the 1960s. In the 1970s Tottenham won the League Cup on two occasions and was the inaugural winner of the UEFA Cup in 1972, becoming the first British club to win two different major European trophies. In the 1980s Spurs won several trophies: the FA Cup twice, FA Community Shield and the UEFA Cup in 1984. In the 1990s the club won the FA Cup and the League Cup. When it won the League Cup once more in 2008, it meant that it had won a major trophy in each of the last six decades – an achievement only matched by Manchester United.

The club's Latin motto is Audere est Facere (lit: "To Dare Is to Do"), and its emblem is a cockerel standing upon a football. The club has a long-standing rivalry with near neighbours Arsenal. Matches between the two teams are known as the North London derby.

[LetsGoPeay]

Group B

AC Milan


Full name:Associazione Calcio Milan S.p.A.
Nickname(s):i Rossoneri (The Red and Blacks), il Diavolo (The Devil), Casciavit (Lombard for: Screwdrivers)
Founded: December 16, 1899; 112 years ago
Ground: San Siro, Milan (capacity: 80,018)
Owner: Silvio Berlusconi
President: Silvio Berlusconi
Head coach: Massimiliano Allegri
League: Serie A
2011–12: Serie A, 2nd

Associazione Calcio Milan, commonly referred to as A.C. Milan or simply Milan, is a professional Italian football club based in Milan, Lombardy, that plays in Serie A. Milan was founded in 1899 by English lace-maker Herbert Kilpin and businessman Alfred Edwards among others. The club has spent its entire history, with the exception of the 1980–81 and 1982–83 seasons, in the top flight of Italian football, known as Serie A since 1929–30.

They are the most successful club in world football in terms of international trophies along with Boca Juniors, with 18 officially recognized UEFA and FIFA titles. Milan has won four world titles, more than any other club in the world, having won the Intercontinental Cup three times and the FIFA Club World Cup once. Milan also won the European Cup/Champions League on seven occasions, second only to Real Madrid. They also won the UEFA Super Cup a record five times and the Cup Winners' Cup twice. Milan won every major competition in which it has competed, with the exception of the Europa League (in this competition they have lost two semifinals in 1972 and in 2002). Domestically, with 18 league titles Milan is the joint-second most successful club in Serie A behind Juventus (28 titles), along with local rivals Inter.[6] They have also won the Coppa Italia five times, as well as a record six Supercoppa Italiana triumphs.

Milan's home games are played at San Siro, also known as the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza. The stadium, which is shared with Inter, is the largest in Italian football, with a total capacity of 80,018. Inter are considered their biggest rivals, and matches between the two teams are called Derby della Madonnina, which is one of the most followed derbies in football. As of 2010, Milan is the third most supported team in Italy, and the seventh most supported team in Europe, ahead of any other Italian team.

The owner of the club is former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, and the vice-president is Adriano Galliani. The club is one of the wealthiest and most valuable in Italian and world football. It was a founding member of the now-defunct G-14 group of Europe's leading football clubs as well as its replacement, the European Club Association.


Borrusia Dortmund


Full name: Ballspielverein Borussia 09 e.V. Dortmund
Nickname(s): Die Borussen (The Borussians), Die Schwarzgelben (The Black Yellows)
Founded: 19 December 1909; 102 years ago
Ground: Westfalenstadion (capacity: 80,720)
President: Reinhard Rauball
General manager: Hans-Joachim Watzke
Manager: Jürgen Klopp
League: Bundesliga
2011–12: 1st

Ballspielverein Borussia 09 e.V. Dortmund, commonly known as Borussia Dortmund, Dortmund, or BVB, is a German sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. Borussia Dortmund plays in the Bundesliga, the top tier of the German football league system. Dortmund is one of the most successful clubs in German football history. They are the current Bundesliga champions.

Borussia Dortmund was founded in 1909 by seventeen football players from Dortmund. Borussia Dortmund have won eight German football championships, three German Cups, four German Supercups, one UEFA Champions League, one UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, and one Intercontinental Cup. Their UEFA Cup Winners' Cup win in 1966 made them the first German club to win a European title.

Since 1974, Dortmund have played their home games at Westfalenstadion. The stadium is the biggest stadium in Germany. Borussia Dortmund's colors are black and yellow. Dortmund holds a long-standing rivalry with Schalke. Matches between the two clubs are referred to as the Revierderby. In the last two decades, a strong rivalry with Bayern Munich has emerged, known as Der Klassiker (English: The Classic). Borussia Dortmund's motto is "Echte Liebe" (English: "True Love").


Juventus


Full name: Juventus Football Club S.p.A.
Nickname(s): [La] Vecchia Signora (The Old Lady), [La] Fidanzata d'Italia (The Girlfriend of Italy), bianconeri (The White-Blacks), [Le] Zebre (The Zebras), [La] Signora Omicidi (The Lady Killer), [La] Goeba (Gallo-Italic for: Hunchback)
Founded: 1 November 1897; 115 years ago (as Sport Club Juventus)
Ground: Juventus Stadium (capacity: 41,000)
Owner: Agnelli family (through Exor S.p.A)
Chairman: Andrea Agnelli
Manager: Antonio Conte
League: Serie A
2011–12: Serie A, 1st

Juventus Football Club S.p.A. commonly referred to as Juventus and colloquially as Juve are a professional Italian association football club based in Turin, Piedmont. The club is the third oldest of its kind in the country and has spent the majority of its history, with the exception of the 2006–07 season, in the top flight First Division (known as Serie A since 1929).

Founded in 1897 as Sport Club Juventus by a group of young Torinese students, among them, who was their first president, Eugenio Canfari, and his brother Enrico, author of the company's historical memory; they are managed by the industrial Agnelli family since 1923, which constitutes the oldest sporting partnership in Italy, thus making Juventus the first professional club in the country. Over time, the club has become a symbol of the nation's culture and italianità ("Italianness"), due to their tradition of success, some of which have had a significant impact in Italian society, especially in the 1930s and the first postwar decade; and the ideological politics and socio-economic origin of the club's sympathisers. This is reflected, among others, in the club's contribution to the national team, uninterrupted since the second half of 1920s and recognised as one of the most influential in international football, having performed a decisive role in the World Cup triumphs of 1934, 1982 and 2006. The club's fan base is larger than any other Italian football club and is one of the largest world-wide. Support for Juventus is widespread throughout the country and abroad, mainly in countries with a significant presence of Italian immigrants.

Juventus are historically the most successful club in Italian football and one of the most laureated and important globally. Overall, they have won fifty-three official titles on the national and international stage, more than any other Italian club: a record twenty-eight league titles, a record nine Italian cups and five national super cups and, with eleven titles in confederation and inter-confederation competitions (two Intercontinental Cups, two European Champion Clubs' Cup/UEFA Champions Leagues, one European Cup Winners' Cup, a record three UEFA Cups, one UEFA Intertoto Cup and two UEFA Super Cups) the club currently ranks fourth in Europe and eighth in the world with the most trophies won. In 1985, under the management of Giovanni Trapattoni, who led the Torinese team to thirteen official trophies in ten years until 1986, including six league titles and five international titles; Juventus became the first club in the history of European football to have won all three major competitions organised by the Union of European Football Associations: the European Champions' Cup, the (now-defunct) Cup Winners' Cup and the UEFA Cup (the first Italian and Southern European side to win the tournament). After their triumph in the Intercontinental Cup the same year, the club also became the first in football history to have won all possible confederation competitions and the club world title, a record equaled by Brazilian club São Paulo with their victory at the 2012 Copa Sudamericana. According to the all-time ranking published in 2009 by the International Federation of Football History and Statistics, an organization recognised by FIFA, based on clubs' performance in international competitions, Juventus were Italy's best club and second in Europe of the 20th century.


Barcelona


Full name: Futbol Club Barcelona
Nickname(s): Barça or Blaugrana (team), Culés or Barcelonistas (supporters), Blaugranes or Azulgranas (supporters)
Founded:29 November 1899 (113 years ago) as Foot-Ball Club Barcelona
Ground:Camp Nou, Barcelona (capacity: 99,354)
President: Sandro Rosell
Manager: Tito Vilanova
League: La Liga
2011–12: La Liga, 2nd

Futbol Club Barcelona, also known as Barcelona and familiarly as Barça, is a professional football club, based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.

Founded in 1899 by a group of Swiss, English and Catalan footballers led by Joan Gamper, the club has become a symbol of Catalan culture and Catalanism, hence the motto "Més que un club" (More than a club). The official Barcelona anthem is the "Cant del Barça" written by Jaume Picas and Josep Maria Espinàs. Unlike many other football clubs, the supporters own and operate Barcelona. It is the world's second-richest football club in terms of revenue, with an annual turnover of €398 million. The club has a long-standing rivalry with Real Madrid; matches between the two teams are referred to as "El Clásico".

They are the current Copa del Rey champions and have won 21 La Liga, 26 Copa del Rey, 10 Supercopa de España, 3 Copa Eva Duarte and 2 Copa de la Liga trophies, as well as being the record holder for the latter four competitions. In international club football Barcelona have won four UEFA Champions League, a record four UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, four UEFA Super Cup, a record three Inter-Cities Fairs Cup and a record two FIFA Club World Cup trophies.

Barcelona is also the only European club to have played continental football every season since 1955, and one of the only three clubs never to have been relegated from La Liga, along with Athletic Bilbao and Real Madrid. In 2009, Barcelona became the first Spanish club to win the treble consisting of La Liga, Copa del Rey, and the Champions League. That same year, it also became the first football club ever to win six out of six competitions in a single year, thus completing the sextuple, comprising the aforementioned treble and the Spanish Super Cup, UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup.

[LetsGoPeay]

Group C

Real Madrid


Full name:Real Madrid Club de Fútbol
Nickname(s): Los Blancos (The Whites) Los Merengues (The Meringues) Los Vikingos (The Vikings)
Founded: 6 March 1902 (110 years ago) as Madrid Football Club[2]
Ground: Estadio Santiago Bernabéu, Madrid (capacity: 85,454[3])
President: Florentino Pérez
Manager: José Mourinho
League: La Liga
2011–12: La Liga, 1st

Real Madrid Club de Fútbol, commonly known as Real Madrid, is a professional football club based in Madrid, Spain.

Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, has traditionally worn a white home kit since. The word Real is Spanish for royal and was bestowed to the club by King Alfonso XIII in 1920 together with the royal crown in the emblem. The team has played its home matches in the 85,454-capacity Santiago Bernabéu Stadium in downtown Madrid since 1947. Unlike most European football clubs, Real Madrid's members (socios) have owned and operated the club since its inception.

The club is the richest football club in terms of annual revenue, generating €479.5million in 2011 and the second most valuable, worth €1.8billion. It is one of three clubs to have never been relegated from the top flight of Spanish football, along with Athletic Bilbao and Barcelona. Real Madrid holds many long-standing rivalries, most notably El Clásico with FC Barcelona.

The club established itself as a major force in both Spanish and European football during the 1950s. Domestically, Real Madrid has won a record 32 La Liga titles, 18 Copas del Rey, 9 Supercopas de España, 1 Copa Eva Duarte and 1 Copa de la Liga. Internationally it has won a record nine European Cup/UEFA Champions League titles and a joint record three Intercontinental Cups, as well as two UEFA Cups, and one UEFA Super Cup.


Inter Milan


Full name: Football Club Internazionale Milano
Nickname(s):I Nerazzurri (The Black and Blues), La Beneamata (The Cherished One), Il Biscione (The Big Grass Snake), Baüscia (Boasters in Lombard language)
Founded: 9 March 1908; 104 years ago
Ground: San Siro, Milan (capacity: 80,018)
Owner: Massimo Moratti
President: Massimo Moratti
Head coach: Andrea Stramaccioni
League: Serie A
2011–12: Serie A, 6th

Football Club Internazionale Milano S.p.A., commonly referred to as Internazionale or simply Inter, and colloquially known as Inter Milan outside of Italy, is a professional Italian football club based in Milan, Lombardy. They have spent their entire history in the top flight First Division (known as Serie A since 1929). Internazionale have won 30 domestic trophies, including the league 18 times, the Coppa Italia seven times and the Supercoppa Italiana five times. From 2006 to 2010, the club won five successive league titles, equalling the all-time record. They have won the Champions League three times; two back-to-back in 1964 and 1965 and then another in 2010. The last completed an unprecedented Italian treble with the Coppa Italia and the Scudetto. The club has also won three UEFA Cups, two Intercontinental Cups and one FIFA Club World Cup.

Inter's home games are played at San Siro, also known as the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza. The stadium, which is shared with A.C. Milan, is the largest in Italian football, with a total capacity of 80,018. Milan are considered one of their biggest rivals, and matches between the two teams are called Derby della Madonnina, which is one of the most followed derbies in football. As of 2010, Inter is the second-most supported team in Italy, and the eighth most supported team in Europe. The current president and owner of Inter is Massimo Moratti. The club is one of the wealthiest and most valuable in Italian and world football. It was a founding member of the now-defunct G-14 group of Europe's leading football clubs as well as its replacement, the European Club Association.


Arsenal


Full name: Arsenal Football Club
Nickname(s): The Gunners
Founded: 1886 as Dial Square
Ground: Emirates Stadium, Holloway, London (capacity: 60,361)
Owner: Arsenal Holdings plc
Chairman: Peter Hill-Wood
Manager: Arsène Wenger
League: Premier League
2011–12: Premier League, 3rd

Arsenal Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Holloway, London. One of the most successful clubs in English football, it has won 13 First Division and Premier League titles and 10 FA Cups. Arsenal holds the record for the longest uninterrupted period in the English top flight and would be placed first in an aggregated league of the entire 20th century. It is the second side to complete an English top flight season unbeaten (in the 2003–04 season), and the only one to do so across 38 matches.

Arsenal was founded in 1886 in Woolwich and in 1893 became the first club from the south of England to join the Football League. In 1913, it moved north across the city to Arsenal Stadium in Highbury. In the 1930s the club won five League Championship titles and two FA Cups. After a lean period in the post-war years it won the League and FA Cup Double, in the 1970–71 season, and in the 1990s and first decade of the 21st century won two more Doubles and reached the 2006 UEFA Champions League Final. Arsenal has a long-standing rivalry with North London neighbours Tottenham Hotspur, with whom it contests the North London derby. Arsenal is the fourth most valuable association football club in the world as of 2012, valued at $1.3 billion.


Liverpool


Full name: Liverpool Football Club
Nickname(s): The Reds
Founded: 15 March 1892 (120 years)
Ground: Anfield (capacity: 45,522)
Owner: Fenway Sports Group
Chairman: Tom Werner
Manager: Brendan Rodgers
League: Premier League
2011–12: Premier League, 8th

Liverpool Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Liverpool. The club has won eighteen League titles, seven FA Cups and a record eight League Cups. Liverpool has won more European titles than any other English club, having won five European Cups, three UEFA Cups and three UEFA Super Cups.

Liverpool was founded in 1892 and joined the Football League the following year. The club has played at Anfield since its formation. The most successful period in Liverpool's history was the 1970s and '80s when Bill Shankly and Bob Paisley led the club to eleven league titles and seven European trophies.

The club's supporters have been involved in two major tragedies. The first was the Heysel Stadium disaster in 1985 in which charging Liverpool fans caused a wall to collapse, killing 39 Juventus supporters. In the 1989 Hillsborough disaster, 96 Liverpool supporters lost their lives in a crush against perimeter fencing.

Liverpool has long-standing rivalries with neighbours Everton and with Manchester United. The team changed from red shirts and white shorts to an all-red home strip in 1964. The club's anthem is "You'll Never Walk Alone".

[LetsGoPeay]

Group D

Manchester United


Full name: Manchester United Football Club
Nickname(s): The Red Devils
Founded: 1878, as Newton Heath LYR F.C.
Ground: Old Trafford (capacity: 75,765)
Owner: Glazer family
Co-chairmen: Joel and Avram Glazer
Manager: Sir Alex Ferguson
League: Premier League
2011–12: Premier League, 2nd

Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.

Manchester United has won many trophies in English football, including a record 19 league titles, a record 11 FA Cups, four League Cups and a record 19 FA Community Shields. The club has also won three European Cups, one UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, one UEFA Super Cup, one Intercontinental Cup and one FIFA Club World Cup. In 1998–99, the club won a Treble of the Premier League, the FA Cup and the UEFA Champions League, an unprecedented feat for an English club.

The 1958 Munich air disaster claimed the lives of eight players. In 1968, under the management of Matt Busby, Manchester United was the first English football club to win the European Cup. The current manager, Sir Alex Ferguson, has won 24 major honours since he took over in November 1986.

Manchester United is one of the wealthiest and most widely supported football teams in the world. As of July 2012, the club is number one in Forbes magazine's annual ranking of the world's 50 most valuable sports teams, valued at $2.23 billion. After being floated on the London Stock Exchange in 1991, the club was purchased by Malcolm Glazer in May 2005 in a deal valuing the club at almost £800 million. In August 2012, Manchester United made an initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange.


FC Porto


Full name: Futebol Clube do Porto
Nickname(s): Portistas, Dragões (Dragons), Azuis e Brancos (Blues and Whites)
Short name: Porto
Founded: September 28, 1893 (119 years ago) as Foot-Ball Club do Porto
Ground: Estádio do Dragã, Porto, Portugal (capacity: 50,399)
President: Jorge Nuno Pinto da Costa
Manager: Vítor Pereira
League: Primeira Liga
2011–12: Primeira Liga, 1st

Futebol Clube do Porto MH IH MH OM, commonly known as FC Porto, Porto, or FCP, is a Portuguese multi-sports club from the city of Porto, in the northern region of the country. Although they successfully compete in a number of different sports, FC Porto is mostly known for its association football team. Founded in Porto in September 28, 1893, it is one of the "Três Grandes" (Big Three, in English), football clubs in Portugal, with SL Benfica and Sporting being the other two clubs, FC Porto's biggest rivals. FC Porto's supporters are often called "Portistas" or "Dragões" (Dragons).

FC Porto is the most successful Portuguese football club in terms of total titles, with 72 titles, ahead of Benfica, which has 70 titles and ahead of Sporting CP, which has 45 titles. It is the second most successful Portuguese football club in domestic competitions, with 65 titles, behind Benfica, which has 67 titles, and ahead of Sporting, which has 44 titles, and the most successful Portuguese football club in international competitions, with 7 titles, ahead of Benfica, which has 2 titles, and ahead of Sporting and Braga which have 1 title.

Domestically, it holds the record of five Primeira Liga titles in a row, having won the Primeira Liga 26 times. Other national titles won by the club include the Championship of Portugal/Portuguese Cup 20 times and the Portuguese SuperCup 19 times. FC Porto has the distinction of being the second of only two teams in the history of the Primeira Liga to have completed an entire 30 game season unbeaten (in the 2010–11 season, with the other team being Benfica in the 1972–73 and 1977–78 seasons). In the 2010–11 season, FC Porto achieved the largest difference ever between champion and runners-up (21 points) in a 3 points per win system.

FC Porto is an internationally lauded team, with a national record of seven international titles: the 1986–87 European Cup, the 1987 Intercontinental Cup, the 1987 UEFA Super Cup (Portugal's only UEFA Super Cup trophy), thus becoming one of a few teams in the world to hold in possession three major international titles simultaneously and the only one in Portugal, the 2002–03 UEFA Cup (Portugal's only UEFA Cup trophy), the 2003–04 UEFA Champions League (Portugal's only UEFA Champions League trophy), the 2004 Intercontinental Cup (Portugal's only Intercontinental Cup trophies) and the 2010–11 UEFA Europa League (Portugal's only UEFA Europa League trophy). In addition, FC Porto was runners-up in the 1983–84 European Cup Winners' Cup, in the 2003 UEFA Super Cup, in the 2004 UEFA Super Cup and in the 2011 UEFA Super Cup.

FC Porto was one of the founding members of the Primeira Liga in 1933, and, together with Benfica and Sporting, it has never been relegated from the First Division (Primeira Divisão, in Portuguese) of Portuguese football. FC Porto was also one of the founding members of the disbanded G-14, and is a member of the European Clubs Association (one of the founding members as well).


Marseilles


Full name: Olympique de Marseille
Nickname(s): Les Phocéens, L'OM
Founded: 1899
Ground: Stade Vélodrome (capacity: 60,031)
Owner: Margarita Louis-Dreyfus
Chairman: Vincent Labrune
Manager: Élie Baup
League: Ligue 1
2011–12: Ligue 1, 10th

Olympique de Marseille, or simply Marseille, is a French association football club based in Marseille. Founded in 1899, the club play in Ligue 1 and have spent most of their history in the top tier of French football. Marseille have been French champions nine times and have won the Coupe de France a record ten times. In 1993, the club became the first and only French club to win the UEFA Champions League. In 1994, Marseille were relegated because of a bribery scandal, losing their domestic trophy, but not the UEFA Champions League title. In 2010, Marseille became French champions again, under the stewardship of former club captain Didier Deschamps.

Marseille's home ground is the 60,031-person-capacity Stade Vélodrome located in the southern part of the city, where they have played since 1937. The Stade Vélodrome is renowned for its lively atmosphere. The club have a large fan-base having regularly averaged the highest all-time attendance in French football. Marseille's average home gate for the 2008–09 season was 52,276, the highest in Ligue 1.

Marseille's traditional kit colours were white shirts and shorts with blue socks until 1986. Since 1986, Marseille have played with white shirts, white shorts and white socks, and the blue color became lighter due to Adidas marketing but in 2012-2013, the club returned to his original kit, wearing blue socks. The club's current badge was adopted in 2004. The club's motto Droit Au But (French for "Straight to the Goal") appears under the badge and a star representing the victory in the Champions League is featured on the top. In 1997, Marseille was purchased by Franco-Swiss businessman Robert Louis-Dreyfus.


Bayern Munich


Full name: Fußball-Club Bayern München e. V.
Nickname(s): Der FCB (The FCB), Die Bayern (The Bavarians), Die Roten (The Reds), FC Hollywood, Stern des Südens (Star of the South)
Founded: 27 February 1900; 112 years ago
Ground: Allianz Arena (capacity: 71,137)
President: Uli Hoeneß
Manager: Jupp Heynckes
League: Bundesliga
2011–12: 2nd

Fußball-Club Bayern München e.V., commonly known as FC Bayern München or FC Bayern Munich, is a German sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. It is best known for its professional football team, which plays in the Bundesliga, the top tier of the German football league system, and is the most successful football club in Germany, having won 22 national titles and 15 cups.

The club was founded in 1900 by eleven football players led by Franz John. Although Bayern won its first national championship in 1932, the club was not selected for the Bundesliga at its inception in 1963. The club had its period of greatest success in the middle of the 1970s when, under the leadership of Franz Beckenbauer, it won the European Cup three times in a row (1974–76). In recent years Bayern Munich has been the most successful club in German football, winning five of the last ten Bundesliga titles. The club's last international title was the Intercontinental Cup in 2001, after they won their fourth European Cup the same year.

Bayern Munich has a rivalry with Borussia Dortmund, TSV 1860 München, and 1. FC Nuremberg. Since the beginning of the 2005–06 season Bayern plays its home games in the Allianz Arena. Previously the team had played in Munich's Olympic Stadium for 33 years. The team colours are red and white, and the team crest shows the colours of Bavaria. Bayern is a membership-based club with more than 185,000 members. There are also 2,764 officially-registered fan clubs with 192,160 members. The club has other departments for chess, handball, basketball, gymnastics, bowling, table tennis, referees, and senior football with more than 1,100 active members.

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