FCBARCELONA.CAT

04.05.2010 10:43

Barca boast most F4 appearances

Llorenç Tarrés

FC Barcelona have qualified for a record 11 European Final Fours – more than any other team- with Maccabi and CSKA behind them on ten.

Barca’s first appearance in a Final Four was in Munich in 1989, though they had played a European final five years earlier against Banco di Roma, who beat them 79-73.

In Munich Barca first came up against what was to be their bogey team, Jugoplastika, who beat them 77-87 in the semi finals and again in the competitions in Zaragoza, 1990, and Paris, 1991.

The club were again in the Final Four in 1994 in Tel-Aviv, only for Catalan rivals Juventut to beat them 79-65. Two years later, the (in)famous final in Paris saw them lose to Panathinaikos and the club’s sixth and seventh appearances came in Rome in 1997 and Salonica in 2000.

Finally, Barca achieved their goal, winning in the Sant Jordi in 2003 with a team including Bodiroga, Fucka, Navarro and Jasikevicius after beating CSKA in the semis and (76-71) and Benetton in the final (76-65).