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It was among the pioneering clubs of Spanish football, and in 1928 was a founding member ofLa Liga, alongside neighbouringAthletic Bilbao,Real Sociedad andReal Unión. Only Real Unión has remained a consistentrival since then due to both of their downfalls from the top flight.
The area ofGreater Bilbao was deeply connected to Britain due to itsiron ore mines and industry.[3] Don Manuel, a priest in the local parish of theLas Arenas neighborhood, would gift balls to local children duringCatechism lessons. Some of these boys would go on to study in England and learn about the local game of football. After their return to Getxo, they spread football to nearby neighborhoods.[4]
By 1901, weekly matches were played in the fields ofLamiako by youth from Las Arenas.[5] In 1903 the same group would win the "Copa Athletic", the biggest local tournament at the juvenile level, as well as play a match againstClub Ciclista de San Sebastián, the precursor toReal Sociedad.[5] They eventually founded a local team in 1909 (encouraged by the recent creation of theSpanish Federation of Football Clubs)[6][better source needed] with the name ofArenas Football Club.[4] It was renamed toClub Arenas three years later.[5]
In 1914 they moved their home ground to the local sports clubReal Club Jolaseta in the Neguri neighborhood.[5]
During the 1916–17 season of theCampeonato, all the teams except for Arenas, Athletic, andReal Unión were suspended.[7] The sporting committee of the tournament decided to play only the remaining matches between these three teams.[8] Jolastokieta, one of the suspended teams, was dissolved that year. Arenas lost one match and won another against Unión as well as beating Athletic twice to claim the title.[a] They then beatSporting de Gijón in the semifinals.[11] This qualified them tothat year's Copa del Rey, where it reached the final inBarcelona, losing 1–2 againstMadrid FC afterextra time.[5]
In 1917 a knock-out match in the Spanish Cup[12] between Arenas and Athletic Bilbao had to be suspended after thepitch was stormed by Athletic supporters who were looking to assault the referee for seeming biased against their team.[13]
Team of 1927, that year the club played the Copa del Rey final
Arenas Getxo appeared in Spanish Cup finals on two further occasions, losing against Barcelona in1925 (0–2) andtwo years later againstReal Unión (0–1), the latter in the onlyall-Basque decisive match in the competition's history not to feature Athletic Bilbao.[14][15] Every member of theSpanish squad at the 1928 Olympics was with aBasque club, and Arenas provided four of the players.
After playing inLa Liga's first seven editions – finishing third in1929–30 – and the following six seasons in thesecond division, the club has spent the vast majority of its existence competing at thefourth level, with the occasional visit to the regional leagues. In2015, Arenas gained promotion to thethird tier for the first time in 35 years, via theplayoffs.[16]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Delmiro
Gorka Luariz
Tomas Agirre
