Rivals by country: ENGLAND

Today, 109 years ago, April 17, Athletic Club faced an English team for the very first time. It was on the field of Jolaseta, where they lost 0-2 against London Civil Service, the first of a list that, ignoring matches held against English sailors and others in the early years and counting only first-team matches for men, has 43 clubs.

Out of the 11 teams that in 1863 laid the foundations of football as a sport, separating it from rugby and founding the TheFA (English Football Association), the only Club left is Civil Service FC, our first rival from England. A key amateur team in the expansion of the sport across the continent thanks to their numerous tours at the beginning of the century, in which they faced clubs that would soon become professional and rank among the best in Europe.

Statistics
The Civil Service is the first Club in a list made up of 42 clubs that we’ve played against 103 times, 18 times in official competitions and another 85 times in friendly matches.
Overall, Athletic have won 40 matches, lost 45 and drawn 18.

The Athletic Club and Chelsea FC teams pose before the game honoring Mr. Pentland in San Mamés. 1959.

All kind of rivals
In a century full of matches, Athletic Club has measured itself against teams that have already disappeared, such as Casuals, Nunhead, New Crusaders and West Norwood, and, at the opposite side, against thirteen clubs that currently take part in the Premier League and are ranked in the top the list of the world’s most powerful clubs: Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Tottenham, Chelsea, Aston Vila, Burnley, Everton, Leicester, Newcastle, Southampton, West Ham and Wolverhampton. Our rivals also include Premier League classics such as Middlesbrough, Queen’s Park Rangers, West Brom and Fulham, as well as Brian Clough’s landmark team, Nottingham Forest, who won two consecutive Championships (European Cups).

Frequent rivals
Athletic Club has faced eight of its English opponents on five occasions. They got a positive record against Manchester United, Everton and Southampton (three wins/two defeats); a draw with West Bromwich Albion and West Norwood, and a negative result against Aston Vila (1V/2E/2D) and Liverpool and West Ham (1/3/1).

European competitions
Out of the nine European qualifying matches, Athletic Club won four of them, winning six games, being defeated eight times and drawing four.

• The two play-offs against Manchester United do stand out. In the first leg of the European Cup quarterfinals in the 1956/57 season, Athletic won 5-3 under the snow at San Mamés, but they were eliminated after the return match, 3-0.
• In the 16th UEFA Europa League, Athletic won both matches: the unforgettable 3-2 at Old Trafford and the 2-1 at San Mames.
• Liverpool was dropped out of the UEFA 1930s in the 1968/69 season by the lions but they took their revenge in the Champions (European Cup) in the season 83/84.
• Aston Vila knocked us out of the UEFA Europa League on the two occasions we played against each other, in 77/78 and 97/98.
• Manchester City knocked Athletic out in the 69/70 European Cup Winners’ Cup final.
• We won against Southampton and Newcastle at the UEFA in the seasons 71/72 and 94/95.

Interesting facts

• After the result was repeated in the two matches, and with no penalties being taken, the 1968 European qualifier against Liverpool was resolved with a coin toss, which fell on the left-hand side.
• In the only play-off in which Athletic Club scored five goals in one match against an English club (5-3 against Manchester United in the European Cup), they were finally knocked out of the competition by a 3-0 win in the second leg. Interestingly, that match was not played at Old Trafford, but on Maine Road, the home ground of City, since United’s stadium was being rebuilt.
• Athletic also suffered three thrashings in their opening matches against English clubs. Against the Civil Service in 1912, 3-8, and against the English Wanderers in 1914 and West Ham in 1921, both by 6-0.
• By some twist of fate, amongst our classic English rivals Arsenal is not included, but their women’s team, Arsenal Ladies, whom our lions have met twice.
• The cycling champion Eddy Merckx took the kick of honour at San Mames in the play-off against Southampton.
• Of the top 25 in the historic English ranking (English Premier League plus First Division), we have only 7 teams left to play: Arsenal FC (2), Sunderland (10), Blackburn Rovers (12), Sheffield Wednesday (14), Sheffield United (17), Leeds United (20) and Stoke City (23).

Ziganda scores the winning goal against Newcastle UFC. Lap 1/16 final UEFA 1994-95.

• Images: AC Museoa