The 2012 Copa del Rey (Kings Cup) will begin on 16th
February in Palau Sant Jordi, Barcelona and the hosts will be desperate to complete a sensational hat-trick of consecutive victories in the competition. FC Barcelona Regal arrived to the Euroleague Top 16 as Group D champions and have continued in imperious form. They are clearly going to take some stopping in the Copa del Rey.
F.C. Barcelona Regal are rightly regarded as a Euroleague superpower and are considered as title contenders each season. They won the Euroleague title in 2010 but were thwarted in their attempt for back-to-back successes when beaten in the playoffs by eventual champions Panathinaikos. Barcelona responded well to the defeat and finished the season as Spanish League and King’s Cup champions.
The club have a proud history with almost forty domestic trophies and six European titles. FC Barcelona emerged as one of the giants of the game in the 1940s with victory in the Spanish King’s Cup on five occasions. They later enjoyed a run of success in the 1980s. Aíto García Reneses guided a talented group of players that included stars Nacho Solozabal, Chicho Sibilio, Juan Antonio "Epi" San Epifanio and Audie Norris. Barcelona reached the 1984 Euroleague final, losing out to Roma before winning the Saporta Cup in 1985 and 1986. They followed up with success in the Korac Cup in 1987.
Barcelona then set about challenging for Euroleague glory and made it to the Euroleague Final Four each season from 1989 to 1991, each time losing to champions Split. Barca suffered three further defeats in the Final Four in the 1990s alone and again in 2000. In 2003 they finally tasted success in the Euroleague when hosting the Final Four at Palau Sant Jordi.
Coached by Svetislav Pesic, the great Dejan Bodiroga teamed with Gregor Fucka, Sarunas Jasikevicius and Juan Carlos Navarro to guide Barca its first Euroleague crown. Barcelona returned to the Final Four again in 2006 but lost out to champions CSKA Moscow in the semi-finals. Compensation came with the Copa del Rey title in 2007. In 2008-09 Xavi Pascual had his first complete season as head coach and led them to the Spanish League title and a return to the Final Four. The 2009-10 season was possibly Barcelona’s greatest year with star names like Navarro, Ricky Rubio, Fran Vazquez, Erazem Lorbek and Terence Morris made them Euroleague champions with an incredible 20-2 record. They seemed destined for another Final Four last season after eight consecutive wins but eventually surrendered their crown to Panathinaikos. Barca finished the year as Spanish champions and will be looking to add a third consecutive Copa del Rey to their impressive record. Official price tickets are now available on Ticket2Final website.