Now we know where Roberto Carlos will play when he is 35 and retired! On a serious note, I wonder to what extent the Solari experience (having played college soccer in the US) will influence Real (Madrid) to use Real (Salt Lake) as a place to check out and try out future American-grown talents...hmmm.
It's not necessarily a joke, it might be a form of tribute After all, there's even an Inter Cardiff in Wales... rmnews.blogspot.com
Does anyone have a comprehensive list of all the Spanish clubs with "Real" in the title? Here's the ones off the top of my head for starters: Real Madrid Real Sociedad Real Club Deportivo Espanyol Real Club Deportivo de La Coruña Real Betis Real Club Deportivo Mallorca Real Zaragoza Real Unión Club de Irún Real Sporting de Gijón Real Murcia Real Racing Club de Santander Real Club Recreativo de Huelva Real Valladolid Real Club Celta de Vigo rmnews.blogspot.com
If those reading this thread have gained a deeper apprecation or curiosity for the political and social history intertwined with Spanish soccer, you should read "Morbo", Phil Ball's excellent book on the topic. There are more subplots in Spanish soccer than you could possibly imagine. Each game is practically a soap opera, and I'm not even referring to Becks.
And an Arsenal in, I think, Paraguay (or was it Peru? The shirts look like Peru's national team, but light blue instead of white).
Is it this pretentious to name a team Royal? it's ok now b/c the team is famous worldwide, but I mean didn't anybody complain when the team was first named?
The title of "Real" was not given to Madrid until almost 20 years after the team was founded. Teams do not name themselves "Real _____". The title is given to a team by a reigning Spanish monarch.
Just some Latin lessons: "Real" comes from the Latin word "res" (genitive: "rei") what means "thing, object, matter, affair, event, fact...". So the the king ("rex") is ruler over the material world (contrary to a republic where the people have the power ->"res publica").
Actually, not correct, Real is spanisch and it means Royal. Real Madrid was founded in 1902 not as Real Madrid but as Sociedad Madrid FC. They called there team then Los Blancos or Los Merengues, they started to call there team Real in 1920 when King Alfons XIII bestowed the club to REAL in 1920. I'm from Belgium and I speak dutch, so every time a game of Real Madrid playes our reporters use the term "DE KONINKLIJKE" or as there supporters use the nickname "EL REAL" what stand for "THE ROYALTY". And it is so that not one team in Spain has the term REAL in there founded name. It is a title that they have given like Madrid or are granted to use when the club excist 50 years after they apply for it officialy, at least it is so in Belgium, officialy called Kingdom Of Belgium. Madrid has given it earlier because Madrid is the capital city and the King wanted to look Madrid more powerfull, don't forget World War I has just ended.
Real = Royal or in Dutch Koninklijke and it is a is an honorary title given to certain companies and non-profit organizations, although rare exceptions are made for newer recipients considered of great importance for society. It is the King that appoint the title to a company or an association that has been in existence for at least fifty years. So the term Real that is used by company's or associations like Real Salt Lake City has nothing to do with Royalty, because the USA is not a kingdom. Dave Checketts choose to call the team Real with the intend to create a brand name that could became well known and famous for it simplicity just like an association as Real Madrid had been striving toward to be a club that is world-famous. So the term "Real" in Real Salt Lake City have more in common than you think. It was taken from Real Madrid out of idealisme witch is good, but in my opinion every team founded in a country that is not a kingdom that uses the term "REAL" is respectless towards the teams that have been played and worked so hard for it to be granted by the king to use REAL or ROYAL or KONINKLIJKE in there teams name. And not one owner that is not of an nationality of a country that is an kingdom has the right to use it as a brand name to became world-famous, given the fact that I don't think of NON-PROFIT as I hear the term "Brand" . But I also realize that Dave Checketts intension were good. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koninklijk
More Spanish history... In the days before the Euro, "un reál" referred to a coin. In areas of the U.S where you had Spanish immigrants (like Tampa), it was common for them to refer to an American dime as "un reál". In the pre-Euro days, a 5 peseta coin was referred to as "un duro". Look that one up.
In 1931, the Spanish Second Republic banned all real designations in sports clubs. Most notably, la Real Sociedad was renamed Donostia Football Club.
Speaking of which, the Copa del Rey was renamed Copa del Presidente de la República in 1931, Copa del Generalísimo in 1940, and back to Copa del Rey in 1976.