Real Unión

Did You Know?

• Real Unión was one of the founding members of La Liga in 1929, alongside fellow Basque clubs Athletic Bilbao, Real Sociedad and Arenas Club de Getxo.
• Patricio, a Real Unión player, scored Spain's first-ever international goal in a 1–0 victory over Denmark on 28 August 1920 at the Olympic Games.
• In 2008, Real Unión became the first Segunda División B team to eliminate Real Madrid at home in the Copa del Rey, winning 3–2 at home and losing 4–3 away to advance on away goals.
• Unai Emery, whose father and grandfather played for Real Unión, completed a takeover of the club in July 2021.

History

Real Unión is one of the pioneering clubs in Spanish football history. In 1928, they became a founding member of La Liga alongside fellow Basque sides Athletic Bilbao, Real Sociedad, and Arenas Club de Getxo. The club itself was created in 1915 through the merger of Irún Sporting Club and Racing Club de Irún. Irún Sporting Club had started out as Irún Foot-Ball Club in 1902 before changing its name in 1907. Racing Club de Irún, founded in 1908, had already lifted the Copa del Rey in 1913, defeating Athletic Bilbao 1–0 in a replayed final. For a time the merged club was called Unión Club Irún, until King Alfonso XIII granted it royal approval. During the Second Spanish Republic, the club dropped the royal title and went back to that name.

Real Unión went on to win the Copa del Rey three more times. They beat Real Madrid in 1918 and again in 1924, the latter with former Derby County and England striker Steve Bloomer as their coach. In 1927, they faced Arenas Getxo in the first all-Basque final and won. Both the 1924 and 1927 finals ended 1–0, with José Echeveste scoring the winner each time. The club also finished as runners-up in 1922, losing 5–1 to Barcelona. In 1930, Real Unión took part in the Coupe des Nations in Geneva, a tournament that invited champions from across Europe and is seen as a forerunner to the UEFA Champions League. It remains unclear why Unión was invited, as they had finished sixth in La Liga the previous season. They were eliminated in the quarter-finals by Slavia Prague. The club was relegated from the top flight in 1932.

At the 1920 Olympic Games, Spain made its international debut, and Real Unión contributed two players to the squad: Eguiazábal and Patricio. Patricio scored Spain’s first-ever international goal in a 1–0 win over Denmark on 28 August 1920. Another Unión player, René Petit, represented France at the same Olympics. Later, in the 1970s and 1980s, Spanish internationals Javier Irureta and Roberto López Ufarte started their careers at the club.