The lowdown on Athletic Club

Another La Liga fixture awaits this weekend and FC Barcelona will be looking to continue their fine form as they visit Athletic Club at 9pm CET on Sunday. Here’s the lowdown on the team they call The Lions.

Where are they from?

The city of Bilbao is the tenth largest in Spain with a population of almost 350,000, although the ‘Greater Bilbao’ metropolitan area is home to getting on for a million people. It is the main city of the Basque Country, which has its own language and culture. Bilbao is a highly industrialised city and its most famous landmark is the Guggenheim Museum.

Club history

Due to being a port connected to Britain, Bilbao was one of the first cities in Spain to develop a football culture, and the Athletic Club was founded one year before FC Barcelona in 1898.

In the early years of the 20^th century, the rivalry between Athletic and Barça was probably the most intense in the country. But as the years went by, the traditional friendship between Basques and Catalans was reflected more and more on the football field as they were united against a ‘common enemy’ in the rising Real Madrid.

Athletic remain, along with Barça and Real Madrid, one of just three clubs never to have been relegated out of the first division. And they are second in the all-time list for Spanish Cup victories (23) and fourth for La Liga titles (8), although they have not won either since their double winning campaign in 1983/84.

Arguably this is because the club continues to observe the tradition (it has never been an official policy) of only fielding players raised in the Basque football system. It is testimony to the quality of football in the region that Athletic have remained so competitive in the face of the ‘globalisation’ of football.

The Stadium

The club’s old San Mamés stadium was affectionately known as the Cathedral, but it has now been replaced by a completely new facility on the exact same site. The changes were all made without the team ever having to stop playing at their famous ground and were completed in 2013. The current capacity is 53,289.

Head-to-head

In January of this year, Athletic knocked Barça out of the Copa del Rey for the third time in five years, and the Basques were also victorious in the Spanish Super Cup of 2021. But in remarkable contrast to those setbacks in knockout competitions, the Catalans have remained solid in the league, losing just one of their last 20 meetings with the side from Bilbao.

But after back-to-back 4-0 wins, the last two meetings have been very tight affairs. At San Mamés last season, it took a solitary goal from Raphinha to split the sides, while they were heading for a 0-0 draw at the Estadi Olimpic last October before Marc Guiu sensationally scored on his debut just seconds after coming on as a late substitute.

Last ten meetings
24/01/24 (COPA) Athletic 4-2 Barça
22/10/23 (LIGA) Barça 1-0 Athletic
12/03/23 (LIGA) Athletic 0-1 Barça
23/10/22 (LIGA) Barça 4-0 Athletic
27/02/22 (LIGA) Barça 4-0 Athletic
20/01/22 (COPA DEL REY) Athletic 3-2 Barça
21/08/21 (LIGA): Athletic 1-1 Barça
17/04/21 (COPA DEL REY): Athletic 0-4 Barça
31/01/21 (LIGA): Barça 2-1 Athletic
17/01/21 (SPANISH SUPER CUP): Barça 2-3 Athletic

Form guide

Athletic missed out on a place in Europe this season, but based on current form they should be back in 2024/25. In fact, they could even be in the Champions League, with just three points separating them from third placed Atlético Madrid. Their form at San Mamés has been especially strong, where they haven't lost since been toppled by Real Madrid on the opening day, and where they are currently on a run of seven straight wins.

And Athletic's love affair with the cup continues, and following a resounding 3-0 defeat of Atlético on Thursday (4-0 on aggregate) they are into the final for the sixth time this century. Mallorca now stand between them and finally getting their hands on the trophy for the first time since 1984.

The squad

Most capped internationals
Unai Simón (Spain, 37), Iñaki Williams (Ghana, 17), Nico Williams (Spain, 10), Oihan Sancet (Spain, 2), Iker Muniain (Spain, 2), Raúl García (Spain, 2), Ander Herrera (Spain, 2)

Barça connections
Central midfielder Iñigo Ruiz de Galarreta spent one season at Barça B before signing for Las Palmas. With a spell at Mallorca in between, he joined Athletic last summer. 

The boss

Ernesto Valverde is a familiar face at Barça. He played for Barça from 1988–1991 and then returned as manager from 2017–2020, guiding the club to two Liga titles and one Copa del Rey. This is his third stint as boss of Athletic, for whom he made 170 appearances in his playing days.

Valverde has also managed Espanyol, Valencia and Villarreal in Spain, and also Olympiacos, with whom he won three Greek league championships.