Few football grounds boast a more prestigious address than the Bernabeu, lies as it does o

Few football grounds boast a more prestigious

address than the Bernabeu, lies as it does on the 【M1】______

Castellana, the three-lining highway that runs through 【M2】______

the heart of Madrid.

As Real date back to 1902, when the Sociedad 【M3】______

Madrid Football Club was formed, it was not until

1920 when the club was granted permission to use the 【M4】______

Real (royal) prefix. Work began on the current

stadium in October 1944. The land had been purchased

on three million pesetas; construction costs totalled a 【M5】______

further 38 million, a staggered sum for the time. The 【M6】______

cost of the new stadium led to claims, never proving, 【M7】______

that Real had received financial aid from General

Franco' s government. Under Bernabeu's patronage,

Real Madrid became the greatest club side ever, won 【M8】______

the European Champions Cup a record five times in a

row between 1956 and 1960, a remarkable feat that

is unlikely to be challenged.

Madrid lies, quite literally, at the heart of

Spain. This is no small coincidence that the capital's 【M9】______

leading football club is seen like a symbol of all 【M10】______

things Spanish, just as FC Barcelona is a beacon for the independent Catalan spirit.

【M1】