One of the most historic showdowns in Spanish football history is about to take place again this weekend, as FC Barcelona and Athletic Bilbao clash again , continuing the special confrontation between them. The two teams are one of Spain’s oldest clubs, having been founded in 1899 and 1898 respectively, and they have met 239 times in all official competitions.
In these duels, Barcelona has the upper hand, with the Red and Blues winning a total of 121 times, while Athletic Bilbao has won 79 times. There were 39 draws. Looking at their 184 matches in La Liga alone, Barcelona won 93 times, Athletic Bilbao won 60 times and drew 31 times. Considering that there have been a total of 92 seasons of La Liga in the past, a simple calculation shows that these two teams have faced each other twice in each league season. Like Real Madrid, they have never been relegated from the top flight.
King of Cups
This The matchup was filled with tense moments for one simple reason: these two teams have long been competing for various trophies. In fact, their first official meeting was in the 1920 Copa del Rey final, when Barcelona won the final in Gijon thanks to goals from Vicente Martínez and Paulino Alcántara. 2-0 win.
Just over a decade later, the Basques had their revenge as they scored consecutive goals against FC Barcelona Several big wins. These include the first time the two clubs met in La Liga, a 5-1 win over Barcelona in Bilbao in 1929, and the 1930/31 season, when Athletic Bilbao beat their opponents 12-1, which remains the most popular match to this day. The worst defeat in Barcelona’s history. In addition, in 1932, in the King’s Cup final, which was then called the “Cup of the Republic”, Athletic Bilbao won 1-0, and Bata scored the only goal in that game.
The two clubs have long been known as the “Kings of Cups” as they respectively occupy the top two positions in Spanish domestic cup wins. Barcelona has won 31 times in the Copa del Rey, while Bibao has won 23 times, three more than third-placed Real Madrid. The two clubs have met nine times in the Copa del Rey finals, with Barcelona in 1920, 1942, 1953, 2009, 2012, 2015 and 2021, while Athletic Bilbao won in 1932 and 1984.
The 1984 Copa del Rey final ended with the Police It ended by driving some players off the field. At that time, Athletic Bilbao completed the league and cup double this season, and the two clubs often competed for the top spot in La Liga. In addition to the 1983 Athletic Bilbao Go Andoni Goikoetxea’s nasty foul caused Diego Maradona’s injury, which made their direct duel full of excitement.
Atletico Bilbao prides itself on winning the only European competition against its rivals. This happened in the UEFA Cup in the 1976/77 season, when Athletic Bilbao won 2-1 in the first leg The opponent, then in the second round, Javier Irureta and Johan Cruyff scored two goals each, helping Athletic Bilbao advance with a total score of 4-3.
Modern Barcelona and Bilbao showdown
The atmosphere at matches in recent years has certainly been friendlier than before, although the passion in the stands remains undiminished. Recent games have also tilted more towards Barça, especially in the recent Copa del Rey final. However, it is Bilbao who deserves to be remembered The two trophies of the E-sports club in the 21st century were won against Barcelona. In the 2015 Spanish Super Cup, the Basque team won 5-1 with a total score of 5-1 thanks to Aritz Aduriz’s hat trick. The 2021 Spanish Super Cup was a one-leg final, with Iñaki Williams scoring the winning goal in overtime and ultimately winning 3-2.
Currently, Barcelona has scored three consecutive goals against Athletic Bilbao wins, with scores of 4-0, 4-0 and 1-0 respectively. At home, Barcelona is particularly dominant, as Athletic Bilbao has not won at Camp Nou since 2001. Although this year The weekend’s match will be played at the Stadio Olimpico in Montjuïc rather than the Camp Nou, but Athletic Bilbao will certainly be hoping to get the better of their old rivals in their 240th meeting.
About La Liga
Spanish professional football league LALIGA (abbreviation: La Liga) It is a global, innovative and socially responsible sports league and a leader in leisure and entertainment. The league is responsible for organizing the Spanish professional football leagues – La Liga and La Liga, and covers 20 La Liga clubs and 22 La Liga clubs. La Liga is the football league with the most social media followers in the world, with more than 200 million fans and covering 16 platforms in 20 different languages. La Liga is headquartered in Madrid and operates in 41 countries and regions around the world It has 44 foreign representatives. In 2014, La Liga established an office in China. The league actively participates in social activities through its fund LALIGA Genuine and is the only professional football league in the world that has a league for players with intellectual disabilities.
