Málaga CF

History

Málaga's origins lie in CD Málaga, founded in 1904. Club Atlético Malagueño was established on 25 May 1948 as a reserve team of CD Málaga, after the club absorbed CD Santo Tomás to create a reserve side. When both CD Málaga and CA Malagueño ended up in the 1959–60 Tercera División following CD Málaga's relegation from the Segunda División, CA Malagueño, as a reserve team, would have been forced into regional competition. To avoid this, it separated from its parent club and registered independently with the Royal Spanish Football Federation, allowing it to survive after CD Málaga ceased operations.

In the 1992–93 season, CA Malagueño played in Tercera División Group 9 and earned promotion to Segunda División B, but was relegated the next season and faced financial collapse. On 19 December 1993, members voted in a referendum to change the club's name, and on 29 June 1994, CA Malagueño became Málaga Club de Fútbol S.A.D. In the early 2000s, under manager Joaquín Peiro, the club won trophies and moved up a division. Málaga's only UEFA Intertoto Cup appearance came in 2002, where they defeated Gent, Willem II, and Villarreal to claim the trophy.

Their subsequent UEFA Cup run ended in a penalty-shootout quarter-final loss to Boavista, after eliminating Željezničar Sarajevo, Amica Wronki, Leeds United, and AEK Athens. After Peiró retired, several key players left. Juande Ramos took over and oversaw a 5–1 home win over Barcelona, with a hat-trick from loanee Salva Ballesta. Ramos later departed for Sevilla, and Gregorio Manzano succeeded him.

Honours

Málaga has won the Segunda División once (1998–99), the Segunda División B once (1997–98), and the Tercera División three times (1963–64, 1992–93, 1994–95). In European competition, they reached the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals in 2012–13 and the UEFA Europa League quarter-finals in 2002–03, and won the UEFA Intertoto Cup in 2002. Domestically, they have won the Trofeo Costa del Sol ten times, with victories in 2005, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2016, 2023, 2025, and 2026. They also won the Schalke 04 Cup in 2014 and were runners-up in the Copa EuroAmericana in 2015. The club's main rivalry is with Granada CF, known as the Derby of eastern Andalusia.