Athletic Bilbao

Athletic Bilbao

Athletic Club, commonly known as Athletic Bilbao, was founded around 1901-1903 in the Basque port city of Bilbao and is one of Spanish football's most unique institutions — a club that has competed in La Liga continuously since 1929 while adhering to a self-imposed policy of fielding only players born or developed in the Basque Country. The club plays at the spectacular San Mamés stadium (capacity 53,289), rebuilt and reopened in 2013. Athletic have won eight La Liga titles and 24 Copa del Rey trophies — second only to Barcelona in the all-time Cup list — and produced world-class players including Telmo Zarra, who held the La Liga scoring record for over 60 years, and Nico Williams, who shone at Euro 2024 and signed a ten-year contract extension. In 2024, Athletic ended a 40-year wait by winning the Copa del Rey.