Athletic Club

Athletic Club was founded in 1898 in the Basque Country of northern Spain. One of the most unique clubs in world football, Athletic have maintained an extraordinary policy of only registering players of Basque origin - born or developed in the Basque Country or surrounding regions. Despite this self-imposed restriction, the club has never been relegated from La Liga and has won 8 league titles and 24 Copa del Rey trophies.

Copa del Rey victories span more than a century, with the most recent coming in 2024 when they defeated Mallorca. In European competition, Athletic reached the 2012 UEFA Europa League final, losing to Atletico Madrid.

Athletic Club have produced many fine players including Andoni Zubizarreta, Fernando Llorente, Iker Muniain and Unai Simon.

The club home, San Mames stadium, opened in 2013 with a capacity of 53,289. Athletic Club are deeply embedded in Basque culture.