 The trophy on display in theAthletic Bilbao museum | |
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Country | Spain |
| Teams | 5 |
| Final positions | |
| Champions | Bizcaya |
| Runners-up | FC Barcelona |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 5 |
| Goals scored | 27 (5.4 per match) |
| Top goal scorer(s) |  Walter EvansWilliam Dyer(5 goals each) |
1903 → | |
The1902 Copa de la Coronación (Coronation Cup in English) was a football competition in honour of the coronation ofAlfonso XIII of Spain. TheRoyal Spanish Football Federation does not recognize it as the first season of theCopa del Rey, which began the following year.[1]
The competition was thought up afterCarlos Padrós, later president ofMadrid FC, suggested a football competition to celebrate the coronation ofAlfonso XIII. Four other teams joined Madrid for the first competition:FC Barcelona,Club Español de Foot-Ball,Bizcaya (a combination ofAthletic Club andBilbao Football Club) andNew Foot-Ball Club. The competition featured the first recorded game between Barcelona and Madrid FC, with the former emerging as 3–1 winners, courtesy of goals fromUdo Steinberg andJoan Gamper.
Carlos Padrós was also the referee of thefinal, held at theHipódromo inMadrid, in whichBizcaya lifted the trophy after beating Barcelona 2–1.[2]
Note: Some sources listUdo Steinberg as the goalscorer of Barcelona's consolation goal.[6]
| Copa de la Coronación 1902 Winners |
|---|
| Bizcaya 1st Title |
Originally, this was to feature the four clubs aside fromCopa de la Coronación winnersBizcaya in a knockout tournament.
However,New Foot-Ball Club had returned home after their crushing defeat to Bizcaya in the Copa de la Coronación, whileFC Barcelona were forced to withdraw as their players had to return to their occupations, leaving them unable to field a team.
Therefore, theGran Peña Cup was played as a single match betweenMadrid FC andClub Español.[2]
| Madrid FC | 3–2 | Club Español |
|---|---|---|
? ? ? | ? ? |
| Rank | Player | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Walter Evans |  Bizcaya | 5 |
| William Dyer | |||
| 2 | Juan Astorquia | 3 | |
| 3 | Raymond Cazeaux | 2 | |
 Udo Steinberg | Barcelona FC |
The Copa de la Coronación was the first national football tournament played in Spain, being organized as a punctual commemorative celebration. However, its success led to the organization ofthe first edition of theCopa del Rey the following year, then known as the Spanish Championship. Since then, it has been held on an annual basis. Due to this fact, the Copa de la Coronación is generally considered informally as the first edition of the Copa del Rey, although theRoyal Spanish Football Federation does not recognize it as such.[7]
