“The first part of four in the serialisation of my dissertation ‘To what extent can Real Madrid CF and FC Barcelona be considered to have been political institutions in Spain during the twentieth century?’, this instalment introduces the topic at hand and provides academic and historical context to the subject.” The Equaliser – Part One: Introduction, Aims and Context, Part Two: The Political Life of FC Barcelona, Part Three: Real Madrid, Franco and the Socio Model, Part Four: Conclusions