| Season | 1939–40 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Atlético Aviación (1st title) |
| Relegated | Betis Racing Santander |
| Matches | 132 |
| Goals | 501 (3.8 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Victorio Unamuno (20 goals) |
| Biggest home win | Sevilla 8–2Racing Santander |
| Biggest away win | Betis 0–4Madrid FC |
| Highest scoring | Athletic Bilbao 7–5Barcelona |
| Longest winning run | 5 matches Atlético Madrid |
| Longest unbeaten run | 7 matches Sevilla |
| Longest winless run | 8 matches Zaragoza |
| Longest losing run | 4 matches Athletic Bilbao Celta Español Racing Santander |
1940–41 → | |
The1939–40La Liga was the ninth season since its establishment and the first one after theSpanish Civil War, which forced the suspension of the competition for three years. The season started on December 3, 1939, and finished on April 28, 1940.
Despite being relegated in the previous season,Atlético Aviación won its first title ever.
For this season, the team qualified in the 10th position would face the second qualified team fromSegunda División in a single-game play-off at a neutral venue. The winner would play the next season of La Liga.
Due to the several damages inEstadio Buenavista after the Spanish Civil War,Oviedo did not play this season. However, theSpanish Football Federation assured them a berth in the1940–41 La Liga.
Athletic Madrid changed its name toAthletic Aviación, after its merge with Aviación Nacional. Despite being relegated to Segunda División, it remained in the league by winning a play-off match againstOsasuna for occupying the vacant berth after the resignation of Oviedo. Due to the damages atEstadio Metropolitano de Madrid, they played their games during this season atEstadio Chamartín, and one game atVallecas.
Celta andZaragoza made their debut in La Liga.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Atlético Aviación(C) | 22 | 14 | 1 | 7 | 43 | 29 | +14 | 29 | |
| 2 | Sevilla | 22 | 11 | 6 | 5 | 60 | 44 | +16 | 28 | |
| 3 | Athletic Bilbao | 22 | 11 | 4 | 7 | 57 | 44 | +13 | 26 | |
| 4 | Madrid FC | 22 | 12 | 1 | 9 | 47 | 35 | +12 | 25 | |
| 5 | Español | 22 | 11 | 2 | 9 | 43 | 43 | 0 | 24 | |
| 6 | Hércules | 22 | 9 | 5 | 8 | 41 | 34 | +7 | 23 | |
| 7 | Zaragoza | 22 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 30 | 40 | −10 | 21[a] | |
| 8 | Valencia | 22 | 9 | 3 | 10 | 40 | 36 | +4 | 21[a] | |
| 9 | Barcelona | 22 | 8 | 3 | 11 | 32 | 38 | −6 | 19[b] | |
| 10 | Celta(O) | 22 | 9 | 1 | 12 | 45 | 50 | −5 | 19[b] | Qualification for therelegation play-offs |
| 11 | Betis(R) | 22 | 6 | 4 | 12 | 26 | 51 | −25 | 16 | Relegation to theSegunda División |
| 12 | Racing Santander(R) | 22 | 6 | 1 | 15 | 37 | 57 | −20 | 13 |
| Home \ Away | AAV | ATH | BAR | BET | CEL | ESP | HER | MAD | RAC | SEV | VAL | ZAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atlético Aviación | — | 3–1 | 3–0 | 0–0 | 4–1 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 4–2 | 2–0 | 5–1 |
| Athletic Bilbao | 1–3 | — | 7–5 | 6–1 | 4–1 | 4–0 | 4–1 | 3–1 | 3–2 | 3–4 | 1–2 | 1–1 |
| Barcelona | 1–2 | 0–2 | — | 2–0 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 3–1 | 1–2 | 4–1 | 2–1 |
| Betis | 1–2 | 0–0 | 3–0 | — | 2–0 | 2–0 | 4–3 | 0–4 | 2–1 | 3–2 | 0–3 | 0–0 |
| Celta | 1–0 | 2–4 | 1–2 | 4–2 | — | 2–0 | 4–0 | 2–3 | 5–1 | 3–3 | 2–1 | 5–1 |
| Español | 2–0 | 3–4 | 1–1 | 5–0 | 4–1 | — | 3–3 | 5–4 | 3–1 | 2–1 | 2–3 | 2–0 |
| Hércules | 4–1 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 3–0 | 6–1 | 1–2 | — | 0–2 | 3–1 | 3–3 | 2–1 | 5–1 |
| Madrid FC | 2–0 | 4–1 | 2–1 | 3–0 | 2–1 | 3–1 | 0–1 | — | 3–2 | 1–3 | 2–1 | 5–1 |
| Racing Santander | 0–2 | 3–0 | 2–3 | 4–2 | 6–2 | 2–3 | 0–1 | 2–1 | — | 3–3 | 2–1 | 1–0 |
| Sevilla | 4–1 | 3–3 | 2–1 | 4–3 | 1–4 | 4–0 | 1–1 | 3–2 | 8–2 | — | 4–2 | 3–0 |
| Valencia | 1–0 | 3–4 | 3–1 | 4–0 | 1–1 | 1–3 | 2–1 | 3–1 | 4–0 | 2–2 | — | 0–0 |
| Zaragoza | 4–3 | 1–1 | 3–1 | 1–1 | 3–2 | 4–1 | 0–0 | 3–1 | 3–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | — |
The play-off match was played atEstadio Chamartín inChamartín de la Rosa.
| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Celta | 1–0 | Deportivo La Coruña |
