The club's roots go back to 1982, when Philip Paterson Smith MBE, who had already helped found Spain's first club in Madrid, moved to Barcelona and established Barcelona CC as the country's second.
First Era - The start
This was the beginning of the club's three eras to date, and the club set up at the Barcelona Polo Club, playing games against Madrid CC and other Spanish teams as they started forming in the 1980s, as well as other emerging European teams on tour or in Barcelona. In 1995, the club did the Spanish double, winning both the League and Cup, with the news making that year's Wisden Almanack. With sponsorship from Chupa Chups the team (and wags!) enjoyed a fully paid tour to China in 1997, becoming the first European side to visit the country. Despite that promising start, but after some slim years with a diminishing fixture list and an ageing squad the club had a short hiatus.
Second Era - The rebirth
In the late 90s Peter Szosty (Brisbane, Australia) took the initiative once more and decided to get a Barcelona team up and running again. With the help of an ICC subsidy the team obtained a new Flicx mat to use as the pitch. They needed a new ground as the Polo Club was no longer within their means, so the mat meant they could play practically anywhere. The club floated around for a few years at the start of the millenium.
Third Era - BICC
Around 2005, the club noted that the demographic of the team, along with the city of Barcelona as a whole, had changed with personnel from all over the world and it was decided to rename it Barcelona International Cricket Club. The new name reflected the inclusivity of the club, and we have had players from about 20 countries since.
In 2007 Peter handed the reins over to Rob Paterson, around the same time that the Federació Catalana de Críquet was conceived and a new officially recognised league was started. With kind sponsorship from a local drinking establishment the club had a new kit designed and we entered into the new league. BICC played friendlies on a field outside Tarragona and league matches were contested at the Baseball Stadium in Montjuic, Barcelona
In 2012 BICC signed a contract to play through the year at Estadi Julià de Campmany, Montjuic, playing friendlies and self-organising tournaments against selected teams from Barcelona as well as welcoming visiting sides from the UK.
In 2018, Rob stood down as President and welcomed club stalwart Damien McMullen into the role and the club continued to grow under his four-year-presidency, despite losing use of the Julià de Campmany and the global pandemic. In 2021, the club rejoined the Catalan League after an eight year absence.
At the end of 2021, the club held its first ever AGM to vote for the new committee, which now consists of nine members led by Sam Phillipps. The club is in the process of registering officially with the Barcelona Council as well as the Catalan Government.
As well as regular friendlies and our league games, we go on regular tours to Menorca, and have also visited Benidorm, Valencia and Porto in recent years, with more tours in the pipeline, BICC is established as a competitive and (very) social side, with a committed squad of players from Australia, New Zealand, India, Pakistan, South Africa, the UK, Sri Lanka and even Spain itself!
We welcome players from any background, any country, of any gender and of any walk of life. An interest in cricket is a plus, and an interest in the post-match social is a must! Feel free to get in touch if you're in Barcelona and fancy playing for us, or if you fancy coming on tour to our beautiful city.
First Era - The start
This was the beginning of the club's three eras to date, and the club set up at the Barcelona Polo Club, playing games against Madrid CC and other Spanish teams as they started forming in the 1980s, as well as other emerging European teams on tour or in Barcelona. In 1995, the club did the Spanish double, winning both the League and Cup, with the news making that year's Wisden Almanack. With sponsorship from Chupa Chups the team (and wags!) enjoyed a fully paid tour to China in 1997, becoming the first European side to visit the country. Despite that promising start, but after some slim years with a diminishing fixture list and an ageing squad the club had a short hiatus.
Second Era - The rebirth
In the late 90s Peter Szosty (Brisbane, Australia) took the initiative once more and decided to get a Barcelona team up and running again. With the help of an ICC subsidy the team obtained a new Flicx mat to use as the pitch. They needed a new ground as the Polo Club was no longer within their means, so the mat meant they could play practically anywhere. The club floated around for a few years at the start of the millenium.
Third Era - BICC
Around 2005, the club noted that the demographic of the team, along with the city of Barcelona as a whole, had changed with personnel from all over the world and it was decided to rename it Barcelona International Cricket Club. The new name reflected the inclusivity of the club, and we have had players from about 20 countries since.
In 2007 Peter handed the reins over to Rob Paterson, around the same time that the Federació Catalana de Críquet was conceived and a new officially recognised league was started. With kind sponsorship from a local drinking establishment the club had a new kit designed and we entered into the new league. BICC played friendlies on a field outside Tarragona and league matches were contested at the Baseball Stadium in Montjuic, Barcelona
In 2012 BICC signed a contract to play through the year at Estadi Julià de Campmany, Montjuic, playing friendlies and self-organising tournaments against selected teams from Barcelona as well as welcoming visiting sides from the UK.
In 2018, Rob stood down as President and welcomed club stalwart Damien McMullen into the role and the club continued to grow under his four-year-presidency, despite losing use of the Julià de Campmany and the global pandemic. In 2021, the club rejoined the Catalan League after an eight year absence.
At the end of 2021, the club held its first ever AGM to vote for the new committee, which now consists of nine members led by Sam Phillipps. The club is in the process of registering officially with the Barcelona Council as well as the Catalan Government.
As well as regular friendlies and our league games, we go on regular tours to Menorca, and have also visited Benidorm, Valencia and Porto in recent years, with more tours in the pipeline, BICC is established as a competitive and (very) social side, with a committed squad of players from Australia, New Zealand, India, Pakistan, South Africa, the UK, Sri Lanka and even Spain itself!
We welcome players from any background, any country, of any gender and of any walk of life. An interest in cricket is a plus, and an interest in the post-match social is a must! Feel free to get in touch if you're in Barcelona and fancy playing for us, or if you fancy coming on tour to our beautiful city.
