Athletic Club "B", commonly known as Bilbao Athletic, is the reserve team of Athletic Club, a

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

club based in Bilbao, in the autonomous community of

Basque Country Basque Country may refer to: * Basque Country (autonomous community), as used in Spain ( es, País Vasco, link=no), also called , an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain (shown in pink on the map) * French Basque Country o ...

in Spain. The team are playing in the Primera Federación – Group 2. Founded in 1964, the team holds home matches at the small stadium attached to the club's training facility at Lezama, holding 3,250 spectators or occasionally at San Mamés Stadium, with its 53,500-seat capacity, for important fixtures. Reserve teams in Spain play in the same football pyramid as their senior team rather than a separate league. However, reserves cannot play in the same division as their senior team. Therefore, Bilbao Athletic are ineligible for promotion to La Liga. Reserve teams are also no longer permitted to enter the Copa del Rey. In addition, only under-23 players, or under-25 with a professional contract, can switch between senior and reserve teams. In recent years, most of Bilbao Athletic's players have been graduates from the club's youth setup (' cantera') via the

feeder team Feeder may refer to: Technology * Feeder (livestock equipment) * Feeder (beekeeping), any of several devices used in apiculture to supplement or replace natural food sources * Feeder (casting), another name for a riser, a reservoir built into a ...

Basconia Club Deportivo Basconia is a Spanish football club based in Basauri, Biscay, in the autonomous community of Basque Country. Founded on 14 March 1913, it currently plays in Tercera División RFEF – Group 4, holding home games at ''Estadio d ...

. As a result of Athletic's signing policy, only Basque players feature also for the reserve team.

History

The ''Bilbao Athletic'' name was first used in 1938 during the Spanish Civil War, when both La Liga and the Copa del Rey were suspended; most of the top Athletic players had joined the ''Euzkadi XI'', a team put together at the suggestion of José Antonio Aguirre, the president of the

(and himself a former

Athletic Bilbao Athletic Club ( eu, Bilboko Athletic Kluba; es, Athletic Club de Bilbao), commonly known as Athletic Bilbao or just Athletic, is a professional Association football, football club based in the city of Bilbao in the Basque Country (autonomous com ...

footballer). Euzkadi went on tour to raise funds for the Basque cause, and also played in the Mexican domestic league. However, at home the '' Campeonato de Vizcaya'' had resumed in 1938. With their best players abroad with Euzkadi, Athletic could only field weakened sides and, to avoid possible shameful results damaging the club's reputation, chose to enter under the name ''Bilbao Athletic'' (the name was derived from the two clubs that merged in 1903 to become Athletic Bilbao – '' Bilbao Football Club'' and ''Athletic Club''). Despite the low expectations, they still won the championship and entered the

1939 Copa del Generalísimo The 1939 Copa del Generalísimo was the 37th staging of the Copa del Rey, the Spanish football cup competition. The competition started on 14 May 1939 and concluded on 25 June 1939 with the final, held at the Montjuïc Stadium in Barcelona. Roun ...

The name was revived in 1964, when Athletic Bilbao decided to establish a reserve team with

Agustín Gaínza Agustín Gaínza Vicandi (28 May 1922 – 6 January 1995) was a Spanish football forward and manager. Club career Nicknamed ''Piru'', Gaínza's entire career was spent with Athletic Bilbao. Born in Basauri, Biscay, he made his official debut a ...

as coach. The new ''Bilbao Athletic'' initially played in local regional leagues before winning promotion to Tercera División in 1966, under

Rafa Iriondo Rafael Iriondo Aurtenetxea (24 October 1918 – 24 February 2016) was a Spanish football forward and manager. He amassed La Liga totals of 285 matches and 89 goals over 15 seasons, with Athletic Bilbao and Real Sociedad. He subsequently became ...

; in

1969 This year is notable for Apollo 11's first landing on the moon. Events January * January 4 – The Government of Spain hands over Ifni to Morocco. * January 5 **Ariana Afghan Airlines Flight 701 crashes into a house on its approach to ...

they first reached

Segunda División The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Segunda División, commercially known as LaLiga SmartBank for sponsorship reasons, is the men's second professional association football division of the Spanish football league system. Administrated by the Lig ...

. In 1983–84, with José Ángel Iribar as coach, and an emerging

Julio Salinas Julio Salinas Fernández (; born 11 September 1962) is a Spanish former footballer who played during the 1980s and 1990s. A tall, lanky centre forward with skills, he was best remembered for his spell at Barcelona – having started his career ...

striker Striker or The Strikers may refer to: People *A participant in a strike action *A participant in a hunger strike *Blacksmith's striker, a type of blacksmith's assistant *Striker's Independent Society, the oldest mystic krewe in America People wi ...

, the reserves finished in second place, only trailing

Castilla CF Real Madrid Castilla Club de Fútbol is a Spanish football team that plays in Primera Federación – Group 1 for the 2022–23 season. It is Real Madrid's reserve team. They play their home games at the Alfredo Di Stéfano Stadium with a capa ...

; both teams were ineligible for promotion, and Salinas won the ''Pichichi''. Bilbao Athletic dropped back down to the third level in 1996, but the main squad continued to be nurtured with several players who had spells with the reserves. BilbaoAth-Lega2016

After 19 seasons in the

Segunda División B Segunda División B ( en, Second Division B) was the third tier of the Spanish football league system containing 102 teams divided into five groups, until it was replaced by the new structure in 2021. It was administered by the Royal Spanish Foot ...

, Bilbao Athletic returned to the second tier after defeating

Cádiz CF Cádiz Club de Fútbol, S.A.D., known simply as Cádiz, is a Spanish professional football club based in Cádiz, Andalusia. Founded in 1910, the club competes in the La Liga, holding home games at Nuevo Mirandilla, with a seating capacity of 20 ...

, 3–1 on aggregate, in the promotion playoffs. However, in their campaign in the Segunda they were reliant on the same group, a core squad of 20-year-olds who had never played at such a high level before, and despite battling performances in most of their games, a pattern of narrow defeats led to the team finishing bottom and being relegated back down at the first attempt. Somewhat ironically, the promoted teams that season were

CD Leganés Club Deportivo Leganés, S.A.D. is a football club based in Leganés, Community of Madrid, Spain, that currently competes in Segunda División, the second tier of the Spanish league system. It was founded on 23 June 1928. It holds home games at ...

whose squad included three players on loan from Athletic who would have been eligible to play for Bilbao Athletic that season, as well as the parent club's local rivals Alavés and Osasuna. The team came close to another promotion in

2020–21 The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen ...

, losing to Burgos after extra time in the final round of the promotion play-offsRESUMEN , Saúl Berjón recoge el testigo de Dani Pendín como héroe del conjunto burgalés (1-0)
Saúl Berjón picks up the witness of Dani Pendín as the hero of the Burgos team (1-0)

RFEF The Royal Spanish Football Federation ( es, Real Federación Española de Fútbol; RFEF) is the governing body of football in Spain. It is based in La Ciudad del Fútbol of Las Rozas, a municipality near Madrid. It was founded on 14 October 1909 ...

(in Spanish), 23 May 2021 (they had lost in the opening round in

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

and

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

Premier League International Cup

Athletic have competed in the Premier League International Cup (an Under-23 tournament, all matches played in England), with most of the players selected for their squad drawn from Bilbao Athletic plus some younger additions from

and the Juvenil squads (the rules permit the use of a limited number of overage players, but Athletic do not use them). In 2014–15, 2015–16 and 2016–17 the club qualified from their group but were eliminated in the quarter-finals, while in the 2017–18, 2018–19 and 2019–20 editions, they bowed out at the group stage.

Background

*As farm team: **''Club Atlético de Bilbao Amateur'' (1964–66) **''Bilbao Atlético Club'' (1966–72) **''Bilbao Athletic Club'' (1972–91) *As reserve team: **''Athletic Club B'' (1991–2006) **''Bilbao Athletic'' (2006–)

Season to season

*As a farm team *As a reserve team ---- *14 seasons in

*2 seasons in Primera Federación *31 seasons in

*10 seasons in Tercera División *2 seasons in Categorías Regionales

Current squad

Reserve team

Out on loan

Honours

: 1982–83, 1988–89 * Tercera División: 1966–67, 1968–69 *

Biscay Championship The Biscay Regional Championship ''(Campeonato Regional de Vizcaya)'', also called the North Regional Championship ''(Campeonato Regional Norte)'' in its early editions, was an official football tournament in Spain organised by the North Football F ...

: 1938–39

Notes

Stadium

For big matches, they use San Mamés, the

first team First team may refer to: Sports * First team (association football), the colloquial name given to the most senior team fielded by a football club * The First Team, the first players known to have played the sport of basketball * First Team All-A ...

stadium.

Selected coaches

* Javier Clemente *

* José Ángel Iribar *

* Ignacio Izagirre (284 matches) *

Iñaki Sáez José Ignacio "Iñaki" Sáez Ruiz (born 23 April 1943) is a Spanish former football player and manager. A defender, he spent the vast majority of his professional career with Athletic Bilbao, which he later also coached in various levels, ap ...

(290 matches, record) * José Ángel Ziganda (242 matches)

Notable players

Note: This list includes players that have appeared in at least 100 top league games and/or have reached international status. *

Justo Ruiz Justo Ruiz González (born 31 August 1969) is a retired footballer who played as a midfielder, and the manager of the Andorra under-21 national team. Club career Ruiz was born in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Basque Country. After five years in the Spanish ...

* Jonás Ramalho * Iñaki Williams * Aritz Aduriz *

Borja Agirretxu Francisco de Borja Agirretxu Barreiro (born 11 November 1971), known as Borja Agirretxu in Basque or Borja Aguirrechu in Spanish, is a Spanish retired footballer who played as a left back. He began his career with Athletic Bilbao, and also ha ...

* Ustaritz Aldekoaotalora *

Edu Alonso Eduardo 'Edu' Alonso Álvarez (born 30 May 1974) is a Spanish retired footballer who played as a right midfielder. He spent the better part of his career with Alavés after starting out at Athletic Bilbao, playing 180 competitive matches for t ...

* Joseba Aguirre * José Ramón Alexanko *

Rafael Alkorta Rafael Alkorta Martínez (born 16 September 1968) is a Spanish former professional footballer who played mainly as a central defender. He is the current sporting director of Athletic Bilbao. Having represented Athletic Bilbao and Real Madrid ...

Yeray Álvarez Yeray Álvarez López (; born 24 January 1995), known simply as Yeray, is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for club Athletic Bilbao. Club career Born in Barakaldo, Biscay, Basque Country, Yeray joined Athletic Bi ...

* Genar Andrinúa *

Anaitz Arbilla Anaitz Arbilla Zabala (born 15 May 1987) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays for SD Eibar as a full-back or a central defender. Club career Born in Pamplona, Navarre, Arbilla began his senior career in 2004 with CD Basconia, Athl ...

* Kepa Arrizabalaga *

Daniel Astrain Daniel Astrain Egozkue (born 29 March 1948) is a Spanish retired footballer who played as a defender. Club career Born in Pamplona, Navarre, Astrain joined Athletic Bilbao in 1969, from local CD Oberena. He spent nearly three full seasons wit ...

* Dani Aranzubia *

Estanislao Argote Estanislao Argote Salaberría (born 21 October 1956) is a Spanish retired footballer who played as a left winger. Club career Born in Zarautz, Gipuzkoa, Argote began playing football with local Zarautz KE, joining Basque neighbours Athletic B ...

* Andoni Ayarza * Enrique Ayúcar * Mikel Balenziaga *

Ibon Begoña Ibon Begoña Zubiaur (born 17 November 1973) is a Spanish former professional footballer who played as a left-back. Club career Born in Bilbao, Basque Country, Begoña amassed La Liga totals of 145 games and five goals over the course of six s ...

Javier Bellido Javier Bellido Plaza (born 9 March 1966) is a Spanish former footballer who played as a central defender. He played 353 matches in Segunda División over 11 seasons (24 goals) in representation of four teams, also appearing for Compostela in La ...

Mario Bermejo Mario Bermejo Castanedo (born 7 October 1978) is a Spanish retired professional footballer who played as a striker. A veteran in the Segunda División, he amassed totals of 267 games and 73 goals for eight clubs over nine seasons. In La Liga h ...

* Rubén Bilbao * Jon Pérez Bolo *

Unai Bustinza Unai Bustinza Martínez (born 2 February 1992) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a right-back for SD Amorebieta. Club career Athletic Bilbao Born in Bilbao, Biscay, Bustinza joined Athletic Bilbao's prolific youth system in 2002 ...

* Andoni Cedrún *

Sergio Corino Sergio Corino Ramón (born 10 October 1974) is a Spanish retired footballer who played mainly as a central defender. Club career Born in Bilbao, Biscay, Corino was a product of Athletic Bilbao's prolific youth system at Lezama. He played nea ...

Miguel de Andrés Miguel de Andrés Barace (born 8 October 1957) is a Spanish former footballer who played as a midfielder. Club career Born in Ochagavía, Navarre, de Andrés joined Athletic Bilbao's youth system, Lezama, in 1975, after reported interest from ...

* Óscar de Marcos * Asier del Horno * Juan Antonio Deusto * Juan José Elgezabal *

Xabier Eskurza Xabier Eskurza García (born 17 January 1970) is a Spanish former professional footballer who played as a right midfielder. He achieved La Liga figures of 256 games and goals in 11 seasons, with Athletic Bilbao, Barcelona, Valencia, Mallorca and ...

* Imanol Etxeberria * Beñat Etxebarria *

Xabier Etxeita Xabier Etxeita Gorritxategi (; ; born 31 October 1987) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays for SD Amorebieta mainly as a centre-back. Club career Born in Amorebieta-Etxano, Biscay, Etxeita finished his development within Athletic B ...

Patxi Ferreira Francisco 'Patxi' Ferreira Colmenero (born 22 May 1967) is a Spanish retired Association football, footballer who played as a Defender (association football)#Centre-back, central defender. Club career Ferreira was born in Saucelle, Province of ...

* Luis Fernando * Luis de la Fuente * José Manuel Galdames *

José Ramón Gallego José Ramón Gallego Souto (born 7 August 1959) is a Spanish retired footballer who played as a midfielder. His entire professional career was spent with Athletic Bilbao, for which he played 11 seasons in La Liga with competitive totals of 33 ...

* Carlos García * Ander Garitano *

Andoni Goikoetxea Andoni Goikoetxea Olaskoaga (born 23 August 1956), Goiko for short, is a Spanish former football centre-back and manager. He was known for his aggressive play and was nicknamed "The Butcher of Bilbao". He mainly played for Athletic Bilbao; amo ...

Ibai Gómez Ibai Gómez Pérez (born 11 November 1989) is a Spanish former professional footballer who played mainly as a left winger. He achieved La Liga totals of 226 games and 28 goals over 11 seasons, with Athletic Bilbao (two spells) and Alavés. He ...

* Pizo Gómez * Fernando Javier Gómez * Javi González * Javi Gracia * Endika Guarrotxena * Julen Guerrero * Felipe Guréndez *

Carlos Gurpegui Carlos Gurpegui Nausia (alternate spelling Gurpegi; born 19 August 1980) is a Spanish Association football, football Manager (association football), manager and former player who played as a central defender or defensive midfielder. He is the ma ...

* Gorka Iraizoz * Andoni Iraola * Ander Iturraspe * Aitor Karanka *

Iñaki Lafuente Iñaki Lafuente Sancha (born 24 January 1976) is a Spanish former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He appeared in 146 La Liga games over ten seasons, mainly with Athletic Bilbao. He also represented Espanyol and Sporting ...

* Andoni Lakabeg *

Aymeric Laporte Aymeric Jean Louis Gérard Alphonse Laporte (born 27 May 1994) is a professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for club Manchester City and the Spain national team. He previously played for Basconia and Athletic Bilbao. When he joined ...

Aitor Larrazábal Aitor Larrazábal Bilbao (born 21 June 1971) is a Spanish former professional footballer who played solely for Athletic Bilbao, currently manager of Gernika Club. A left-back of attacking penchant, he appeared in 445 competitive matches for hi ...

* Iñigo Lekue *

Ángel Lekumberri Ángel M. Lekumberri García (born 21 January 1970), also spelled Ángel Lekunberri, is a Spanish former footballer who played as an midfielder. In a career spanning almost two decades, he played with a variety of clubs in all of Spain's top fo ...

Iñigo Liceranzu Jesús Iñigo Liceranzu Otxoa (13 March 1959) is a Spanish retired footballer who played as a defender, and a coach. Club career Born in Bilbao, Biscay, Liceranzu was a product of local giants Athletic Bilbao. After three years with the reser ...

* Iñigo Lizarralde * Fernando Llorente *

Unai López Unai López Cabrera (; ; born 30 October 1995) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays for Rayo Vallecano as a central midfielder. Club career Born in Errenteria, Gipuzkoa, López joined Athletic Bilbao's youth system in 2011 at the age ...

Alberto Martín Alberto Martín Magret (; born 20 August 1978) is a retired tennis player from Spain. He won three singles titles and reached five Masters Series quarterfinals on clay. Tennis career Martín turned professional in 1995. He won three singles ti ...

Ricardo Mendiguren Ricardo María Mendiguren Egaña (born 19 October 1968) is a Spanish retired professional footballer who played as a forward. Club career Born in Oñati, Gipuzkoa, Mendiguren emerged through Athletic Bilbao's youth ranks. Still a junior, he ma ...

Jesús Merino Jesús Merino (born 1965) is a Spanish comic book artist, best known in the American comic industry for his collaborations with penciller Carlos Pacheco. Merino himself raised from the ''Línea Laberinto'' of ''Planeta-DeAgostini'' Spanish pub ...

* Iker Muniain * Ander Murillo *

Andoni Murúa Andoni Murúa Zentarruzabeitia (born 20 March 1953) is a Spanish retired footballer who played mainly as a left winger. He appeared in 121 La Liga games over the course of five seasons, scoring 29 goals. Club career Born in the village of Burc ...

* Miguel Navarro *

Txema Noriega José María "Txema" Noriega Aldekoa (born 14 November 1958) is a Spanish former professional footballer who played as a forward. His career was associated primarily with Athletic Bilbao, winning the national championship twice as a player in th ...

Unai Núñez Unai Núñez Gestoso (; ; born 30 January 1997) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Celta, on loan from Athletic Bilbao, and the Spain national team. Club career Born in Sestao, Biscay, Basque Country and raise ...

José María Núñez José is a predominantly Spanish and Portuguese form of the given name Joseph. While spelled alike, this name is pronounced differently in each language: Spanish ; Portuguese (or ). In French, the name ''José'', pronounced , is an old vernacu ...

* José Ignacio Oñaederra * Luis Prieto * Carlos Purroy * Álex Remiro *

José Ángel Rojo José Ángel Rojo Arroitia (born 19 March 1948) is a Spanish former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He played 192 La Liga matches over nine seasons, totalling 14 goals for Athletic Bilbao and Racing de Santander. Club care ...

Txetxu Rojo José Francisco 'Txetxu' Rojo Arroitia (28 January 1947 – 23 December 2022), also known as Rojo I, was a Spanish football player and coach. During his career the forward played solely for Athletic Bilbao, in a professional spell which spanne ...

* Dani Ruiz-Bazán * Carlos Ruiz *

Patxi Salinas Francisco 'Patxi' Salinas Fernández (born 17 November 1963) is a Spanish former footballer who played as a central defender, currently manager of Club Portugalete. He amassed La Liga totals of 432 games and 11 goals over 16 seasons, with A ...

* Manuel Sarabia *

Félix Sarriugarte Félix Sarriugarte Montoya (born 6 November 1964) is a Spanish former professional footballer who played as a forward, currently a manager. Playing career Born in Durango, Biscay, Sarriugarte represented Athletic Bilbao for five seasons – hav ...

Miguel Sola Miguel Ángel Sola Elizalde (born 29 September 1957) is a Spanish football manager and former player who played as a midfielder. He amassed La Liga totals of 316 matches and 42 goals over 12 seasons, in representation of Athletic Bilbao and O ...

Markel Susaeta Markel Susaeta Laskurain (, ; born 14 December 1987) is a Spanish former footballer who played as a right winger. He spent almost the entirety of his professional career with Athletic Bilbao after making his debut with the first team in 2007, ...

Unai Simón Unai Simón Mendibil (born 11 June 1997) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for La Liga club Athletic Bilbao and the Spain national team. Club career Simón was born in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Álava, Basque Country, and ...

Óscar Tabuenka Óscar Javier Tabuenka Berges (born 24 April 1971 in Bilbao, Basque Country) is a Spanish retired footballer who played as a central defender In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to st ...

Santiago Urquiaga Santiago Urquiaga Pérez (born 18 April 1958) is a Spanish retired footballer who played as a right back. Club career Born in Barakaldo, Biscay, Urquiaga played nine professional seasons with local powerhouse Athletic Bilbao, being an instr ...

* Josu Urrutia *

Ismael Urtubi Ismael Urtubi Aróstegui (born 24 May 1961) is a Spanish retired footballer who played as a left midfielder. An accomplished penalty kick taker, his entire professional career was spent with Athletic Bilbao with which he appeared in nearly 300 ...

Juanjo Valencia Juan José 'Juanjo' Valencia de la Serna (born 18 September 1971) is a Spanish retired professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He played 191 La Liga games over the course of nine seasons, in representation of Athletic Bilbao, Sevi ...

* Óscar Vales *

Mikel Vesga Mikel Vesga Arruti (; born 8 April 1993) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays for Athletic Bilbao as a defensive midfielder. Club career Born in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Álava, Basque Country, Vesga made his debut as a senior with CD Aurre ...

Juan Carlos Vidal Juan Carlos Vidal Cruz (born 25 September 1954) is a Spanish former professional Association football, footballer who played as a midfielder. Career Club Born in Bilbao, Biscay, Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Country, Vidal played ...

* Nico Williams *

Francisco Yeste Francisco "Fran" Javier Yeste Navarro (born 6 December 1979) is a Spanish retired footballer who played as an attacking midfielder or a left winger, and is a manager. He spent 11 years of his professional career with Athletic Bilbao (19 counti ...

* Félix Zubiaga * Andoni Zubizarreta * Luís María Zugazaga * Fernando Amorebieta

References

External links

Team history
at Athletic Bilbao's official website
Futbolme team profile

La Cantera De Lezama – Unofficial website focusing on Athletic’s youth teams
{{DEFAULTSORT:Athletic Bilbao B Athletic Bilbao Football clubs in the Basque Country (autonomous community) Spanish reserve football teams Association football clubs established in 1964 1964 establishments in Spain Premier League International Cup Segunda División clubs Primera Federación clubs