AC Milan vs Athletic Bilbao 1983 European Cup Winners' Cup Semi-Final

Lore & Background

Athletic have yet to win a continental trophy in 33 attempts, up to and including the 2024–25 season. They finished runners-up in the two-legged 1977 UEFA Cup final, losing to Juventus on the away goals rule, and in the 2012 UEFA Europa League final, losing 3–0 to compatriots Atlético Madrid. They progressed to a third semi-final in the 2024–25 UEFA Europa League but did not reach the final. The club have competed in the group stages of the UEFA Champions League three times, in 1998–99, 2014–15 and 2025–26, without qualifying for the next phase on any occasion.

Reader's Guide

Striker Aritz Aduriz contributed 34 European goals for the club over a six-year spell from 2012 to 2018, winning the Europa League's top scorer award twice (one shared). The player with the most appearances, full-back Óscar de Marcos (77 matches), was also heavily involved during that period as well as in the 2011–12 and 2024–25 Europa League runs.

Did You Know?

• From 1941 until 1975, the club was known as Atlético de Bilbao following a decree from the ruling regime that foreign words should not be used.
• It is traditional for captains of teams visiting Athletic's stadium for the first time to present a bouquet of flowers to a bust of the club's 1920s star Pichichi, usually before European ties.
• Athletic's first experience of European competition was the non-UEFA Latin Cup in 1955–56, where they finished as runners-up to A.C. Milan.
• In the 1956–57 European Cup, Athletic defeated FC Porto and then Budapest Honvéd, whose players were affected by the Hungarian Revolution of 1956.
• The club's heaviest European defeat was 5–0 against Red Star Belgrade in the 1966–67 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup.