Champions without kicking a ball... or when playing away?
The time has come. After 33 LaLiga matchdays, the first chance for Barça to be mathematically crowned champions and add their second trophy of the season after the Spanish Super Cup is here. There are three potential scenarios this weekend.
Two Liga titles won without kicking a ball
What no Barça fan wants is for both Real Madrid and Atlético Madrid to win their games and for the team not to leave the RCDE Stadium victorious, as this would postpone the title win for another matchday. The other two possibilities would end with the Catalans mathematically confirmed as champions. One would involve not even kicking a ball, should neither Real Madrid (who play Getafe on Saturday at 9pm CEST) nor Atlético Madrid (who play Elche on Sunday at 4.15pm CEST) manage to win.
Barça would become champions around 6pm CEST on Sunday, three hours before they play. Should this happen, it would only be the third time in the Club's history that they are crowned champions without kicking a ball, after the league was won in the 1990/91 season when Atlético Madrid lost at Real Sociedad and the 2008/09 season when Real Madrid lost to Villarreal, confirming the first Liga title under Guardiola.
And nine won when playing away from home
Alternatively, and given at least one or both teams from Madrid are highly likely to earn three points on this matchday, Barça would become champions if they win the Barcelona derby. Should this happen, it would be the tenth Liga title win confirmed when playing an away fixture. The first time was actually the first ever Liga season in Spain.
During the 1928/29 season, a win in the final game at the Arenas de Getxo ground ensured Barça won the first ever Liga title. Thirty years later in the 1958/59 season, a victory away to Atlético Madrid on the penultimate matchday saw Helenio Herrera claim a record-breaking league title consisting of 24 wins, three draws, and three defeats, scoring 96 goals and conceding 26.
From a record-breaking Liga title to Cruyff
The third league win when playing away came at Gijón when Johan Cruyff was a player during the 1973/74 season, with the fourth being sealed by a 1-2 win at Valladolid in the 1984/85 season, Barça's 10th league title. The 20th century ended with another title win away from home with the resounding 1-4 victory against Alavés in Vitoria for Louis van Gaal's second league title.
And in the 20th century, a draw away to Levante with a goal by Eto'o confirmed the title in the 2004/05 season, the first since 1999. The 2010/11 campaign was decided in the same way, a 1-1 draw at the Ciutat de València with a goal from another African player, Seydou Keita.
The last two were last decade, a 0-3 win in Granada on the final day of the 2015/16 season, and then two seasons later, by a 2-4 win at the Riazor stadium with four matchdays still to play. Curiously, one example could be included as a league won without kicking a ball and when playing away from home.
Liga champions confirmed... at halftime!
On the penultimate matchday in the 2005/06 season, leaders Barça were playing on 3 May in Vigo at 9pm local time, while second-placed Valencia played an hour earlier in Mallorca at 8pm. As it turned out, Valencia had lost their game 2-1 by around 10pm, meaning Barça were crowned champions... at halftime during their game!
They were drawing 0-0 at the Balaídos stadium, but they came out knowing they had won the league and still went on to win the game 0-1 with a goal by Eto'o. However, this weekend could see another entry added to one of these two lists. Ultimately, what matters is that, whatever happens, Barça are very close to being crowned Liga champions.