Girona

Girona FC – Club History

Girona Football Club was founded on 23 July 1930 in the Catalan city of Girona, located approximately 100 kilometres north of Barcelona near the French border. For most of its existence, Girona was a club of relatively modest ambitions, spending the majority of their history in the lower tiers of Spanish football. The club played predominantly in the Segunda División and lower, with rare forays into La Liga, and was largely unknown beyond regional football circles until the transformative events of the mid-2010s.

The arrival of new ownership – specifically the City Football Group (CFG), the global football conglomerate that also owns Manchester City, among many other clubs – in 2017 fundamentally changed Girona's trajectory. With access to CFG's network of talent, coaching expertise, and financial backing, Girona were promoted to La Liga for the first time in their history in 2017. Since then, they have become one of the most fascinating stories in European football, culminating in an extraordinary 2023–24 season that shocked the continent.

La Liga Era & Titles

Girona have no major trophy wins but their sporting achievements since reaching La Liga have been remarkable. In their very first La Liga season (2017–18), they finished in a respectable 10th position. After a relegation and promotion cycle, Girona returned to La Liga and in 2023–24 produced one of the competition's most stunning seasons in modern memory – finishing 3rd, qualifying for the Champions League for the first time in their history, and at one stage leading La Liga itself. Under manager Michel Sánchez (son of the 1980s Real Madrid legend Míchel), playing an ultra-attacking, high-pressing style, Girona scored more goals than any other team in Europe's top leagues during that campaign. Their debut Champions League campaign in 2024–25 was a milestone of extraordinary proportions for a club from a city of 100,000 people.

Stadium

Girona play their home matches at the Estadi Montilivi, located in the centre of Girona. Originally opened in 1970, the stadium has a modest capacity of approximately 13,450 – one of the smallest in La Liga and one of the smallest to have hosted Champions League football. Despite its intimate scale, Montilivi generates a tremendous atmosphere and the proximity of the stands to the pitch creates an electric environment. The club has explored plans for stadium expansion or relocation given their ambitions, but Montilivi's compact character has become an endearing part of Girona's identity. Girona's Champions League matches in 2024–25 were played at the larger Estadio Olímpic Lluís Companys in Barcelona due to capacity restrictions at Montilivi.

Most Famous Players

Given their recent rise, Girona's most famous players are largely from the modern era. Stuani – the Uruguayan striker born in 1986 – became the club's all-time top scorer and a true icon of Girona's La Liga era, scoring remarkable goals across multiple seasons. Aleix García, a composed Spanish midfielder who developed through Manchester City's academy, became one of La Liga's finest midfielders at Girona before a high-profile transfer to Bayer Leverkusen. Artem Dovbyk, the Ukrainian striker, was the 2023–24 La Liga Pichichi (top scorer) with 24 goals, before moving to Roma. Savinho, the dynamic Brazilian winger on loan from CFG, was sensational. Jesús Navas-level contributions came from players like Viktor Tsygankov and Miguel Gutiérrez in that historic 2023–24 campaign.

Key Milestones

Girona's first-ever La Liga season in 2017–18, achieved after generations as a lower-division club, was itself a historical milestone. The 2023–24 Champions League qualification – as La Liga's third-place club – represented the single greatest achievement in the club's 94-year history. Their goal tally of 85 in 38 La Liga games in 2023–24 was extraordinary, and they reached the top of La Liga in January 2024, a remarkable feat for a club from a city of 100,000. Their first-ever Champions League match (a 2-2 draw against Feyenoord in September 2024) was a historic night for the city and club. CFG ownership since 2017 has been the defining catalyst for the club's transformation from obscurity to European football's most talked-about story.