The History of Marca Newspaper

Are you a fan of Spanish football? If so, you might be interested in the world of sports journalism that covers this exciting sport. With passionate fans, intense rivalries, and some of the best players in the world, Spanish football is a thrilling topic to explore. Join me as we dive into the fascinating world of Spanish sports journalism and uncover the stories behind the headlines through the reading technology that is the Marca newspaper and uncovering its history, cultural and political impact on the game of football.

Historically speaking, Marca is a well-known Spanish newspaper whose publication traces back to December 1938. Manuel Fernández Cuesta founded it as a propaganda tool for General Francisco Franco’s regime during the Spanish Civil War. Its founding and early years are essential to the newspaper’s history and its role in shaping Spanish politics and society. In the post-era of the Spanish Civil War, Marca played a significant role in the revival of Spanish football, providing extensive coverage of matches and chronicling the rise of renowned clubs like Real Madrid and Barcelona while offering insightful analysis. Overall, Marca has a rich history that has impacted not only Spanish journalism but also the country’s cultural and sporting landscape.

For a brief understanding of the history behind the Spanish Civil War and General Franco’s regime, I recommend watching the video below:

The Evolution of Newspapers

The invention of newspapers originally came into existence during the Roman empire, and their publication of their first newspaper, Acta Diurna, or daily doings, in 59 BCE. Ever since, newspapers has undergone through a series of transformation until it became multifaceted medium that it is today. However, the most notorious period of newspaper publication came as a result of Johannes Gutenberg’s printing press in 1440. Furthermore, the Gutenberg printing press produced a high-quality newspaper publications more efficiently that made the written word more accessible to the masses, and built a legacy of modern printing technology that contributed to the development of newspapers overtime from ink-printed .

Cultural & Political Impact of Sports Media: Marca

Hand (2002) stated that sports media discourse plays a significant role in shaping cultural identities by providing an example of how the media representation of England during the 2002 World Cup perpetuated notions that resembled “Englishness,” which compared values, such as patriotism and heroism. Lawrence & Crawford (2019) proposed a term called “digitization” and “hyperdigitalization,” which both refer to how the change of old media tools, such as newspapers, contributed to the introduction of digital media, associated with cultural and political interventions into the realm of sports intensified cultural communication between football fans around the globe. Politically speaking, Power (2020) showed that football has always been associated with politics through manifestation of hooliganism, military propaganda, and masculinity, resulting in distinct political values within the sport.

With this view, Castillo (2021) and Quiroga (2015) highlight how Spanish football in the 20th century, primarily during the era of Franco’s regime, promoted a patriotic view of Spanish football that commemorated them as ferocious, passionate, and nationalistic which is similar to Hand’s (2002) statement of “Englishness.” As a result, Marca’s reporting style of Spanish football through the prevalence of digital media has been somewhat biased.

https://www.marca.com/en/football/real-madrid/2017/04/30/59050d8b46163f4a078b4595.html

Wrap-Up & References

As a Spanish football fan, I love reading Marca for its extensive coverage of the sport, especially about Real Madrid. The engaging storytelling has connected me to the football community in Spain, making it a valuable source of information and entertainment. Despite criticism for bias and sensationalism, Marca captures the essence of the sport and its passion, making football the most relevant and followed sport in history. Nevertheless, Marca is a significant cultural and political icon of Spanish football, evolving from a wartime publication to a beloved source of information and entertainment for football lovers worldwide. Most importantly, It has stood the test of time by adapting to the modern age of digital technology.

• Academic Accelerator. (n.d). https://academic-accelerator.com/encyclopedia/marca-newspaper
• Barcelona and Valencia press complain of LaLiga ‘bias’ over Real Madrid commentary. (2017). Marca. https://www.marca.com/en/football/real-madrid/2017/04/30/59050d8b46163f4a078b4595.html
• Castillo, C. J. (2021, April 11). The first quixotic sports hero: Federico martín bahamontes and national identity creation in spain. Sport in History, 41(4). https://doi.org/10.1080/17460263.2021.1913444
• Hand, D. (2002). Football, cultural identities and the media: A research agenda. Leisure Tourism. https://www.cabi.org/leisuretourism/news/5663
• Lawrence, S. & Crawford, G. (2019). Digital Football Cultures: Fandom, Identities and Resistance. Routledge. https://books.google.ae/books?hl=en&lr=&id=HHxqDwAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PT14&dq=Cultural+and+Political+impact+of+football+newspapers&ots=hclHehtKrY&sig=NLXBRcP3PUbbhLtvPxVyGlt3N0&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=Cultural%20and%20Politi cal%20impact%20of%20football%20newspapers&f=false
• Power, J.M., et al. (2020, February 24). Football and politics: The politics of football. Managing Sport and Leisure, 25(1-2). https://doi.org/10.1080/23750472.2020.1723437
• Quiroga, A. (2015, June 25). Spanish fury: football and national identities under franco. European History Quarterly, 45(3). https://doi.org/10.1177/0265691415587686
• SUNY Schenectady County Community College. (2016). Understanding Media and Culture: An Introduction to Mass Communication. University of Minnesota Libraries. https://open.lib.umn.edu/mediaandculture/chapter/4-2-history-of-newspapers/