What is the story of the Canaletes fountain? If you are a soccer fan you probably have included a mandatory visit to Camp Nou on your list of places to visit in Barcelona during your trip (or at some point if you are going to stay in the city for a longer period of time). But we suggest you to go beyond this typical visit: what about discovering the place where “culés” celebrate the victories of Futbol Club Barcelona? It is an ordinary drinking fountain called Canaletes Fountain, which actually hides a period of Barcelona soccer History.
If you have visited Cibeles square before (the stunning fountain where “merengues” celebrate the victories of Real Madrid) you might feel a bit shocked while comparing it to this little fountain called Caneletes, which is located in Les Rambles. But this emblematic fountain has actually a story behind itself. It hides a Catalan sport tradition that not everyone (not even locals) actually knows. So we decided to dive into this specific period of Barcelona history to reveal where the origin of this emblematic meeting point comes from.
What is the “Canaletes Fountain”?
It is a drinking fountain, but definitely not an ordinary Barcelona drinking fountain. This place is part of Barcelona soccer history and also the official meeting point to celebrate the victories of the Barcelona local soccer team, Futbol Club Barcelona.
It was built in the 19th century, and there are sixteen drinking fountains identical to this one distributed among squares, gardens and streets in the city.
Why do Futbol Club Barcelona victory celebrations are held right at this fountain?
It has an explanation. A historical explanation actually. During the 1930s Futbol Club Barcelona fans used to come to this point to check the results of their team, since they were published on a blackboard which hung up from the newsroom of La Rambla newspaper (located right in front of the Canaletes fountain).
Don’t underestimate the magical power of this fountain
Why are we saying this? Well, you will find the answer right on the floor of this fountain, on a plaque which says the following:
“Si beveu aigua de la font de Canaletes, sempre més sereu uns enamorats de Barcelona. I per lluny que us n’aneu, tornareu sempre”.
Which means:
If you drink water from Canaletes fountain, you will be forever in love with Barcelona. No matter how far you go, you will always come back”.
We guess it is something which is pretty common in the Catalan History, since we find a similar spot in Girona where you also have to take a specific action to make sure you will be coming back. If out of curiosity you want to know more about this Girona legend, we recommend you to read the post we wrote about Girona: Daytrip, Girona from Barcelona by train.
Related post: Magic fountain of Montjuic
Also, if you don’t want to leave the city without having paid a visit to the FCB stadium, Camp Nou or New Camp, you might want to keep reading the article we wrote with useful information before visiting: Camp Nou tour & tickets.
Where is the Canaletes Fountain located?
You will find this Barcelona drinking fountain at La Rambla, 133
How to get to Canaletes?
Subway: L1/L3 Catalunya stop.
Bus: 55, 59, H16, V13, V15.