Elche Club de Fútbol, S.A.D. ( ca-valencia, Elx Club de Futbol, S.A.D.) is a Spanish professional

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

Elche Elche ( ca-valencia, Elx) is a city and municipality of Spain, belonging to the province of Alicante, in the Valencian Community. According to 2014 data, Elche has a population of 228,647 inhabitants,Province of Alicante Alicante ( ca-valencia, Alacant) is a province of eastern Spain, in the southern part of the Valencian Community. It is the second most populated Valencian province. Likewise, the second and third biggest cities in the Valencian Community (Alica ...

, in the

Valencian Community The Valencian Community ( ca-valencia, Comunitat Valenciana, es, Comunidad Valenciana) is an autonomous community of Spain. It is the fourth most populous Spanish autonomous community after Andalusia, Catalonia and the Community of Madrid with ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. Founded in 1923, the club competes in LaLiga Hypermotion, holding home matches at ''

Estadio Manuel Martínez Valero The Estadio Martínez Valero is a stadium located in the Spanish city of Elche in the province of Alicante, Valencian Community. It is the home stadium of Elche CF, a team that is currently playing in La Liga. Its name pays tribute to the late pre ...

'', with a capacity of 33,732 seats. Founded in 1923 as the result of a merger between all of the town's clubs, Elche entered the league system in 1929, reaching

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 ...

1934 Events January–February * January 1 – The International Telecommunication Union, a specialist agency of the League of Nations, is established. * January 15 – The 8.0 1934 Nepal–Bihar earthquake, Nepal–Bihar earthquake strik ...

and

La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known simply as Primera División in Spain, and as La Liga in English-speaking countries and officially as LaLiga Santander for sponsorship reasons, stylized as LaLiga, is the men's ...

1959 Events January * January 1 - Cuba: Fulgencio Batista flees Havana when the forces of Fidel Castro advance. * January 2 - Lunar probe Luna 1 was the first man-made object to attain escape velocity from Earth. It reached the vicinity of E ...

, finishing fifth in the latter tournament in 1963–64. The club were runners-up in the

Copa del Rey The Campeonato de España–Copa de Su Majestad el Rey, commonly known as Copa del Rey or simply La Copa and formerly known as Copa del Presidente de la República (1932–36) and Copa del Generalísimo (1939–76), is an annual knockout footbal ...

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 ...

. Elche became the first and only club in the history of La Liga to be relegated due to unpaid tax debts in the 2014–15 season. Elche returned to La Liga 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 b ...

after being promoted to the Segunda División and then La Liga in only three seasons.

History

Foundation and early years

Elche Club de Fútbol was founded in the winter of 1923, after the

merger Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are business transactions in which the ownership of companies, other business organizations, or their operating units are transferred to or consolidated with another company or business organization. As an aspect ...

of all of the town's football teams. The club's first-ever game was against Monóvar, where they beat the home team 4–0, and its first official match was a 2–0 win over

Crevillente Crevillent ( es, Crevillente) is a town and municipality located in the Alicante province, part of the Valencian Community, Spain. It is situated in the ''comarca'' of Baix Vinalopó, and lies at the foot of the hill range known locally as Serra d ...

. In its first years Elche, like many teams of the time, played in an all white uniform. The team played its first league season in 1929–30, in the

Tercera División Tercera División ( en, Third Division) was the fourth tier of the Spanish football league system. Founded in 1929, it was below the ''Primera División'' (also known as La Liga), the ''Segunda División'', and the semi-professional ''Segunda Di ...

, achieving promotion to the

in 1934. However, Elche suffered relegation for the first time six years later, but were promoted back the following season. In the late 1950s, Elche achieved two consecutive promotions from the third level to

, securing the club's first promotion to the latter competition with a 3–0 success against

Tenerife Tenerife (; ; formerly spelled ''Teneriffe'') is the largest and most populous island of the Canary Islands. It is home to 43% of the total population of the archipelago. With a land area of and a population of 978,100 inhabitants as of Janu ...

in 1959.

1959–78: La Liga

Elche opened its first season in the top level with a 1–1 draw against

Real Oviedo Real Oviedo is a Spanish football club based in Oviedo, Asturias. Founded on 26 March 1926 as a result of the merger of two clubs who had maintained a large sporting rivalry for years in the city: ''Real Stadium Club Ovetense'' and ''Real Club De ...

, the first goal being scored by

Vicente Pahuet Vicente is an Italian, Spanish, and Portuguese name. Like its French variant, Vincent, it is derived from the Latin name ''Vincentius'' meaning "conquering" (from Latin ''vincere'', "to conquer"). Vicente may refer to: Location *São Vicente, Cap ...

. The club finished tenth out of 16 sides, nine points ahead of relegated

Osasuna Club Atlético Osasuna (, ''Osasuna Athletic Club''), or simply Osasuna, is a Spanish professional football club in Pamplona, Navarre. Founded on 24 October 1920, the club currently plays in La Liga, holding home games at the 23,576-capacity El ...

– the campaign included a 2–1 comeback home victory over

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

, but also a 2–11 loss at

Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid. Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...

. The following season saw the team having to compete in the relegation/promotion play-off, where it overcame a 0–1 loss in the away leg against Atlético Ceuta with a 4–0 home victory. Elche achieved their best-ever league finish in 1963–64, ranking in fifth position. The season also saw the club's

reserve team In sports, a reserve team is a team composed of players under contract to a club but who do not normally play in matches for the first team. Reserve teams often include back-up players from the first team, young players who need playing time to i ...

Elche Ilicitano Elche Ilicitano Club de Fútbol, known officially as Elche Ilicitano is a Spanish football team based in Elche, in the autonomous community of Valencia. Founded in 1932 as Club Deportivo Ilicitano, a farm team, it is the reserve team of Elche CF, ...

, promote to

. In

the club reached their first and only

final, following victories over

Pontevedra Pontevedra (, ) is a Spanish city in the north-west of the Iberian Peninsula. It is the capital of both the ''Comarca'' (County) and Province of Pontevedra, and of the Rías Baixas in Galicia. It is also the capital of its own municipality whi ...

Valencia Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, Valencia and the Municipalities of Spain, third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is ...

and

Real Sociedad Real Sociedad de Fútbol, S.A.D., more commonly referred to as Real Sociedad (; ''Royal Society''), La Real in Spanish, Erreala in Basque, is a Spanish professional sports club in the city of San Sebastián, Basque Country, founded on 7 Septem ...

. The semi-final against the latter was won 2–0 in a replay in neutral

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

, as the tie had finished 4–4 on aggregate; the final, played on 15 June at the

Santiago Bernabéu Stadium The Santiago Bernabéu Stadium ( es, Estadio Santiago Bernabéu, ) is a football stadium in Madrid, Spain. With a current seating capacity of 81,044, it has been the home stadium of Real Madrid since its completion in 1947. It is the second-larg ...

in the same city, brought a 0–1 loss to

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 ...

. After twelve seasons Elche were relegated to division two in

1971 * The year 1971 had three partial solar eclipses ( February 25, July 22 and August 20) and two total lunar eclipses (February 10, and August 6). The world population increased by 2.1% this year, the highest increase in history. Events Ja ...

, having finished second from bottom. Two years later the team returned to the main category, as champions. Its second spell in the top flight lasted five seasons, often immerse in relegation fights as the best campaign ( 1974–75) ended with the club in eighth position; at the end of 1977–78 the side returned to the second division after finishing 17th out of 18 clubs, the last game being a 4–4 draw with

Atlético Madrid Club Atlético de Madrid, Sociedad Anónima Deportiva, S.A.D. (; meaning "Athletic Club of Madrid"), known simply as Atleti in the Spanish-speaking world and commonly referred to at international level as Atlético Madrid, is a Spanish profess ...

, which was led 2–4 with five minutes remaining.

80s and 90s: severe financial crisis

After the relegation Elche suffered in 1978, they never managed to gain promotion to the top flight – in fact, in the first five years since their return to the second level, they were fourth on three occasions and fifth on two (and on a further two, even on points with the third-placed team but with a worse goal difference), often losing the chance of promotion on the last matchday. Especially traumatic was the finish of the 1980–81 season: with one game remaining, they were second two points ahead of

Rayo Vallecano Rayo Vallecano de Madrid, S.A.D. (), often abbreviated to Rayo (Spanish for "thunderbolt"), is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid, in the neighbourhood of Vallecas. Rayo was founded on 29 May 1924, and currently compete in La Lig ...

and

Racing de Santander Real Racing Club de Santander, S.A.D. (), also known as Racing de Santander () or simply Racing, is a football club based in Santander, Cantabria, Spain, that currently competes in Segunda División, the second tier of the Spanish league system ...

, only needing a draw against

Cádiz Cádiz (, , ) is a city and port in southwestern Spain. It is the capital of the Province of Cádiz, one of eight that make up the autonomous community of Andalusia. Cádiz, one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Western Europe, ...

at the '' Martínez Valero''; the game ended however in a loss, and Elche finished with 45 points alongside Castellón, Cádiz, Racing and Rayo. A promotion finally occurred at the end of 1983–84, even though Elche only finished fifth in the

regular season In an organized sports league, a typical season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session: for example, in Major League Baseball the season lasts approximately from the last week of March to the last week of Se ...

– the first two positions were occupied by

Real Madrid Castilla 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 cap ...

and

Athletic Bilbao B Athletic Club "B", commonly known as Bilbao Athletic, is the reserve team of Athletic Club, a football club based in Bilbao, in the autonomous community of Basque Country in Spain. The team are playing in the Primera Federación – Group 2. F ...

, who could not promote as reserve sides. The whole of the top division campaign was spent in the relegation zone, and relegation consequently befell as 17th. In

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Australian ...

they were promoted again for another cameo appearance, as the side went on to finish dead last with eighteen points, dropping down a category alongside

Real Murcia Real Murcia Club de Fútbol, S.A.D., commonly known as Real Murcia (, "Royal Murcia"), is a Spanish football club based in Murcia, in the Región de Murcia. Founded in 1919, it currently plays in Primera División RFEF – Group 2, playing ho ...

, who they trailed by nine points; the last match for years in the category was a 1–3 away loss against

Real Zaragoza Real Zaragoza, S.A.D. (), commonly referred to as Zaragoza, is a football club based in Zaragoza, Aragon, Spain, that currently competes in the Segunda División, the second tier of the Spanish league system. Zaragoza holds its home games at La ...

, the goal coming courtesy of

Alfonso Fernández Alfonso Fernández Fernández (born 15 April 1951) is a Spanish boxer. He competed in the men's welterweight event at the 1972 Summer Olympics The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and commonly kn ...

. After the relegation in 1989, Elche started to suffer heavily in the financial department, and relegated to

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 ...

– the new third level created in 1977 – at the end of 1990–91. During the better part of the 1990s the club reached the second division promotion playoffs, only to consecutively fall short. In

1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of t ...

Elche finally managed to return to the second category, being immediately relegated back but gaining another promotion subsequently.

2010s: return to the top flight

2010–11 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

, again in the "silver category", the team finished fourth and thus qualified for the play-offs: after disposing of

Real Valladolid Real Valladolid Club de Fútbol, S.A.D., or simply Real Valladolid () or Valladolid, is a professional football club based in Valladolid, Castile and León, Spain that competes in La Liga, the top tier of the Spanish league system. The club colo ...

in the first round (3–2 on aggregate) the dream of top flight promotion ended at the hands of

Granada Granada (,, DIN 31635, DIN: ; grc, Ἐλιβύργη, Elibýrgē; la, Illiberis or . ) is the capital city of the province of Granada, in the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the fo ...

, on the

away goals rule The away goals rule is a method of tiebreaker, tiebreaking in association football and other sports when teams play each other twice, once at each team's home ground. Under the away goals rule, if the total goals scored by each team are equal, the ...

. On 18 May 2013, following

Barcelona B Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

and

Alcorcón Alcorcón () is a city and municipality of Spain located in the Community of Madrid. as of 2020, it had a population of 172,384. Geography The municipality, largely flat, lies at an average altitude of 711 metres above sea level, with the h ...

's 1–1 draw, Elche was automatically promoted to the top level, returning to the competition after 24 years. In the meantime the team coached by

Fran Escribá Francisco 'Fran' Escribá Segura (born 3 May 1965) is a Spanish football manager and former player who played as a left winger. He is the current manager of Real Zaragoza. Club career Born in Valencia, Escribá played youth football with Valen ...

had broken a number of Segunda División records, being the only team to date able to lead the competition from the first until the last match of the season, setting in the process a new record of both matches won and points scored to date as well as the best first round in the history of Segunda's championship. During the 2013–14 season, the team managed to keep in the top competition, with an average attendance to home matches estimated at 25,104 people. In the 2014–15 season, despite managing once again to keep in the top flight (the team was already safe from relegation four dates before the end of the competition) Elche became the first team ever in the history of the Spanish ''Primera División'' being relegated to ''Segunda'' following new regulations by the Spanish football league limiting excess debt and economic mismanagement. In the 2016–17 season, Elche were relegated to third level after 18 years in professional league. One year later, Elche promoted back to second level after defeating Villarreal B in the final play-off promotion to second level. In the 2018–19 season, Elche finished right in the middle, on 11th place among 22 teams. In the 2019–20 season, Elche were promoted to La Liga by beating

Girona Girona (officially and in Catalan language, Catalan , Spanish: ''Gerona'' ) is a city in northern Catalonia, Spain, at the confluence of the Ter River, Ter, Onyar, Galligants, and Güell rivers. The city had an official population of 103,369 in ...

in the promotion play-off final 1–0 on aggregate. They were promoted back to La Liga after five years in the second and third divisions. In the 2022–23 season, Elche were relegated to the second division after three years in La Liga.

Seasons

Season-by-season

*As ''Elche Football Club'' *As ''Elche Club de Fútbol'' *24 seasons in

*41 seasons in

*8 seasons in

*19 seasons in

Current squad

Reserve team

Other players under contract

Out on loan

Coaching staff

Óscar Suarez
Dr. Paulino Vázquez
Béranger

Honours

*Winners: 1958–59,

2012–13 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

*Runners-up:

International players

Marc Bernaus Marc Bernaus Cano (born 2 February 1977) is an Andorran former footballer who played as a left back. Club career Born in Andorra la Vella, Bernaus was a FC Barcelona youth graduate. He could never appear for the first team in La Liga, playing ...

Juan Carlos Heredia Juan Carlos Heredia Araya (born 1 May 1952 in Córdoba, Argentina, Córdoba) is a former association football, football forward (association football), forward. Born in Argentina, he represented the Spain national football team, Spain national tea ...

Marcelo Trobbiani Marcelo Antonio Trobbiani Ughetto (born 17 February 1955 in Casilda, Santa Fe) is an Argentine football coach and a former player, who played as an attacking midfielder. He currently works as the manager of River Ecuador in Ecuador. Playing c ...

Willy Caballero Wilfredo Daniel Caballero Lazcano (born 28 September 1981) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for club Southampton. He spent most of his career in Spain, representing Elche and Málaga and competing in La Liga w ...

Fernand Goyvaerts Fernand Goyvaerts (24 October 1938 – 5 April 2004) was a Belgian international footballer. He played as an attacker. Club career He made his début for the first team of Club Brugge at the age of 16. In 1958, his penalty kick against CS Ver ...

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Enzo Roco Enzo Pablo Roco Roco (born Enzo Pablo Andía Roco; 16 August 1992) is a Chilean professional footballer who plays as a central defender for La Liga club Elche and the Chile national team. Club career Born in Ovalle, Roco joined Universidad Ca ...

* Dominique Malonga *

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Tommy Christensen Tommy Anton Christensen (born 20 July 1961) is a Danish former footballer who played professionally for, amongst others, Elche CF in Spain, Brøndby in Denmark and Eintracht Braunschweig in Germany. He also played one game for the Denmark nati ...

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Richmond Boakye Richmond Yiadom Boakye (born 28 January 1993) is a Ghanaian professional footballer who plays as a striker. Club career Early career Born in Accra, Greater Accrai, Boakye began his career with Bechem United in his native country of Ghana. H ...

* Wakaso *

Sory Kaba Sory Kaba (born 10 April 1995) is a Guinean professional footballer who plays as a forward for Midtjylland and the Guinea national team. Club career Born in Conakry, Kaba moved to Spain at early age and joined Alcobendas CF's youth setup in ...

* José Cardona *

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* Moha *

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* Francis Uzoho * Jan Berg *

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José Aveiro José Raúl Aveiro Lamas (born 18 July 1936) is a Paraguayan former professional footballer who played as a striker. Career Born in Asunción, Aveiro played for Sportivo Luqueño, Valencia, Valencia Mestalla, Elche, Ontinyent Ontinyent ( es, ...

* Juan Casco * Ramón Hicks * Juan Carlos Lezcano *

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* Germán Leguía *

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* Albert Nadj * Saša Petrović *

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* Chancho *

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* Josan * Carlos Muñoz * Javi Navarro * Nino *

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* César Rodríguez *

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Juan Carlos Socorro Juan Carlos Socorro Vera (born 13 May 1972) is a Venezuelan retired footballer who played as a midfielder, currently manager of Spanish club UD San Fernando. Club career Save for one season, Caracas-born Socorro spent his entire professional ca ...

Andrés Túñez Andrés José Túñez Arceo (; born 15 March 1987) is a Venezuelan professional footballer who plays for Thai club BG Pathum United F.C. as a central defender. Early years Túñez was born in Caracas, Venezuela to José "Pepe" Túñez and Marga ...

Goran Đorović Goran Đorović ( sr-Cyrl, Горан Ђopoвић; born 11 November 1971) is a Serbian retired footballer who played mainly a central defender but also as a left back. In his country, he played for Prishtina and Red Star. He spent the rest of ...

* Carlos Sánchez

Coaches

* César (1959 – 30 June 1960) *

Antonio Barrios Antonio Barrios Seoane (21 May 1910 – 19 August 2002) was a Spanish professional football player and coach. He managed a number of club sides including Real Valladolid, Racing de Santander, Athletic Bilbao, Atlético Madrid, Real Betis, Esp ...

(1 July 1960 – 6 February 1961) *

Otto Bumbel Otto is a masculine German given name and a surname. It originates as an Old High German short form (variants ''Audo'', '' Odo'', ''Udo'') of Germanic names beginning in ''aud-'', an element meaning "wealth, prosperity". The name is recorded f ...

(1962–63) *

Heriberto Herrera Heriberto Herrera Udrizar (24 April 1926 – 26 July 1996) was a footballer and manager who played international football for both Paraguay and Spain as a defender. Career Herrera played for Club Nacional of Paraguay and for several Spanish t ...

(1 July 1963 – 30 June 1964) * Rosendo Hernández (1964) *

Martim Francisco Martim Francisco Ribeiro de Andrada (21 February 1928 – 22 June 1982) was a Brazilian association football coach. He is widely credited with the invention of the 4–2–4 formation when guiding his first club, the Villa Nova AC of Nova Lima ...

(1964–65) *

(1965–67) *

Alfredo Di Stéfano Alfredo (, ) is a cognate of the Anglo-Saxon name Alfred and a common Italian, Galician, Portuguese and Spanish language personal name. People with the given name include: *Alfredo (born 1946), Brazilian footballer born as Alfredo Mostarda Filho ...

(1 July 1967 – 8 January 1968) *

Ferdinand Daučík Ferdinand Daučík (also known as Fernando Daucik; 30 May 1910 – 14 November 1986) was a Slovak football player and manager. Daučík was the manager of several La Liga clubs, most notably Barcelona, Atlético Bilbao, Atlético Madrid and Rea ...

(1968) *

Roque Máspoli Roque Gastón Máspoli Arbelvide (12 October 1917 in Montevideo – 22 February 2004 in Montevideo) was a Uruguayan football player and coach. He was the goalkeeper for the Uruguay national team that won the 1950 World Cup. He was also the h ...

(1 July 1968 – 31 December 1969) *

Salvador Artigas Salvador Artigas Sahún (23 February 1913, Barcelona, Spain – 6 September 1997, Benidorm, Spain) was a Spanish footballer and manager. He was also manager for FC Barcelona, Athletic Bilbao and FC Sevilla. During the Spanish civil war, was a pi ...

(1970) *

(1970–71) *

Roque Olsen Roque Germán Olsen Fontana (9 September 1925 – 15 June 1992), commonly known as Roque Olsen, was an Argentina, Argentine football (soccer), football player and manager. Playing career Olsen started his playing career in the local leagues of P ...

(1971–74) *

Néstor Rossi Néstor Raúl "Pipo" Rossi (Buenos Aires, 10 May 1925 – 13 June 2007) was an Argentine footballer who played as a midfielder. Playing career Nicknamed "Pipo", he started his career at River Plate, playing from 1945 to 1949, and then agai ...

(1974–75) *

Marcel Domingo Marcel Domingo Algara (15 January 1924 – 10 December 2010) was a French football goalkeeper and manager of Spanish origin. He spent part of his career in Spain. Domingo coached RCD Espanyol, UD Las Palmas, UE Lleida, Pontevedra CF, Córdob ...

(1975–76) *

Felipe Mesones Felipe Mesones Temperán (9 February 1936 – 15 December 2017) was an Argentine football right winger and coach. Playing career Born in Buenos Aires, Mesones spent the vast majority of his career in Spain, representing Real Murcia, Levante UD ...

(1976–77) *

(1977–78) *

(1 July 1978 – 30 June 1979) *

Arsenio Iglesias Arsenio Iglesias Pardo (born 24 December 1930) is a Spanish former football forward and manager. Nicknamed ''O Bruxo de Arteixo'' ("The Wizard of Arteixo"), his professional career, which spanned more than four decades, was closely associated t ...

(1979–80) *

Héctor Rial José Héctor Rial Laguía (14 October 1928 – 24 February 1991) was a footballer who played as a forward for Real Madrid between 1954 and 1961, and was part of the team that won five consecutive European Cups. He played professional footbal ...

(1980) *

(1981–82) *

Luis Cid Luis Cid Pérez, known as Carriega (9 December 1929 – 13 February 2018) was a Spanish professional football coach and player. He managed a number of club sides including Sporting de Gijón, Real Zaragoza, Sevilla, Real Betis, Atlético Madrid ...

(1982–83) *

(1983–84) * Antonio Ruiz (1984) *

(1984–85) * Delfín Álvarez (1986–87) *

(1987–88) *

László Kubala László Kubala ( sk, Ladislav Kubala, es, Ladislao Kubala, 10 June 1927 – 17 May 2002) was a Hungarian-Slovak professional footballer who also had Spanish citizenship. He played as a forward for Ferencváros, Slovan Bratislava, Barcelona, ...

(1988–89) * Luis Costa (1989) * Tomeu Llompart (1991–92) *

Julián Rubio Julián Rubio Sánchez (born 28 January 1952) is a Spanish former football midfielder and manager. He appeared in 134 La Liga matches over six seasons (14 goals), mainly in representation of Sevilla. His professional career was closely associat ...

(1 July 1993 – 30 June 1994) *

Quique Hernández Enrique "Quique" Hernández Martí (born 30 October 1958) is a Spanish football manager. Football career Born in Anna, Valencia, Hernández started managing in his early 20s. For the following twenty years, with the exception of the 1995–9 ...

(19 July 1994 – 30 June 1995) *

(1995–96) *

Fabri Fabri is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Anna Fabri (f. 1496), Swedish publisher and printer * Annibale Pio Fabri (1697–1760), Italian singer and composer * Emanuel Fabri (born 1952), Maltese footballer * Ernst Fabri (189 ...

(1996) * Marcial (1996–97) *

Ciriaco Cano Ciriaco Cano González (born 4 August 1948) is a retired Spanish footballer who played as a midfielder for Sporting de Gijón. After retiring as a player, he went on to coach, including for Sporting de Gijón Real Sporting de Gijón, S.A.D. ( ...

(1997–98) * Delfín Álvarez (1997–98) *

Jorge D'Alessandro Roberto Jorge D'Alessandro di Ninno (born 28 July 1949) is an Argentine retired football goalkeeper and manager. He is also one of the hosts of the Spanish TV program '' El Chiringuito de Jugones'', which specializes in football-related debates. ...

(25 January 2000 – 30 June 2000) *

(2000) * Marcial (2000) *

(21 December 2000 – 16 April 2001) * Marcial (2001) *

(1 July 2001 – 30 June 2003) *

Carlos García Cantarero Carlos García Cantarero (born 4 November 1961) is a Spanish football manager. García Cantarero managed Atlético Madrid, Levante and Elche in Segunda División, as well as four teams in Segunda División B. Later, he coached extensively in C ...

(2003) *

Oscar Ruggeri Oscar Alfredo Ruggeri (born 26 January 1962) is an Argentine former professional footballer who played as centre-back. Nicknamed ''El Cabezón'' ("The Big-Headed One"), Ruggeri achieved success at the international level with the Argentina nati ...

(22 December 2003 – 16 May 2004) *

Josu Uribe Jesús Uribesalgo Gutiérrez (born 25 May 1969), commonly known as Josu Uribe, is a Spanish football manager. Club career Born in Gijón, Asturias, Uribe began coaching at the age of 21, managing youth sides at local Sporting de Gijón.

(2004–06) *

(2006) * Luis García (1 July 2006 – 30 June 2007) *

David Vidal David Vidal Tomé (born 2 August 1950) is a Spanish football manager and former player who played as a centre-back. Football career Vidal was born in Porto do Son, A Coruña, Galicia. After an unassuming career (the central defender never pl ...

(12 January 2007 – 12 October 2008) *

Claudio Barragán Claudio Barragán Escobar (born 10 April 1964) is a Spanish retired footballer who played as a striker, currently a manager. His professional career was closely associated to Elche, as both a player and manager, but he was also an important pa ...

(12 October 2008 – 4 October 2009) *

José Bordalás José "Pepe" Bordalás Jiménez (born 5 March 1964) is a Spanish former footballer who played as a striker, currently a manager. His playing career ended due to injury without a first-team appearance for Hércules, and he made his professiona ...

(5 October 2009 – 8 April 2012) *

César Ferrando César Ferrando Jiménez (born 25 July 1959) is a Spanish former footballer who played as a midfielder, currently a manager. Playing career Born in Tavernes de la Valldigna, Valencian Community, Ferrando started his professional career with loc ...

(10 April 2012 – 30 June 2012) *

(1 July 2012 – 26 June 2015) *

Rubén Baraja Rubén Baraja Vegas (; born 11 July 1975) is a Spanish retired footballer, currently manager of Valencia. A complete central midfielder with good tackling, technique, and offensive qualities, together with accurate passing and goalscoring abili ...

(12 July 2015 – 6 June 2016) *

Alberto Toril José Alberto Toril Rodríguez (born 7 July 1973) is a Spanish retired professional footballer who played as a central midfielder, who currently Manager for Liga F club Real Madrid Femenino. He was mainly associated to Real Madrid during his ...

(28 June 2016 – 29 April 2017) *

Vicente Parras Vicente Parras Campello (born 18 November 1975) is a Spanish retired footballer who played as a central defender, and is the manager of CD Alcoyano. Coaching career Born in Alicante but raised in Elche, also in the Valencian Community, Parras o ...

(29 April 2017 – 16 June 2017) *

Vicente Mir Vicente Mir Arnau (born 3 June 1968) is a Spanish retired footballer who played as a forward, currently manager of Torrent CF. Apart from one appearance for Valencia in La Liga, he spent his entire career as a player and manager in the lower div ...

(16 June 2017 – 13 November 2017) * José Acciari (13 November 2017 – 21 November 2017) *

Josico José Joaquín Moreno Verdú (born 6 January 1975), known as Josico, is a Spanish retired footballer who played as a defensive midfielder, currently a manager. His 16-year professional career was mainly associated with Las Palmas and Villarreal ...

(21 November 2017 – 27 February 2018) *

Pacheta José Rojo Martín (born 23 March 1968), known as Pacheta, is a Spanish former footballer who played as a midfielder, currently manager of Real Valladolid. He amassed La Liga totals of 183 matches and 15 goals over eight seasons, representing in ...

(27 February 2018 – 26 August 2020) *

Jorge Almirón Jorge Francisco Almirón Quintana (born June 19, 1971), commonly known as Jorge Almirón, is an Argentine football manager and former player who played as a defensive midfielder. Career On July 26, 1997, Almirón made his Liga MX debut with A ...

(26 August 2020 – 12 February 2021) *

(14 February 2021 – 21 November 2021) *

Francisco Francisco is the Spanish and Portuguese form of the masculine given name ''Franciscus''. Nicknames In Spanish, people with the name Francisco are sometimes nicknamed "Paco (name), Paco". Francis of Assisi, San Francisco de Asís was known as '' ...

(28 November 2021 – 4 October 2022) *

(12 October 2022 – 7 November 2022) *

Pablo Machín Pablo Machín Díez (; born 7 April 1975) is a Spanish manager. he is the currently head coach La Liga club of Elche. Playing career Born in Soria, Machín was a CD Numancia youth graduate. Despite making five first team appearances during the ...

(17 November 2022 – 20 March 2023)

Reserve team

Elche's reserve team,

, was founded in 1932. It managed to spend two seasons in the second division, when the main squad was in the top flight.

Rivalries

Elche CF and

Hércules CF Hércules de Alicante Club de Fútbol, S.A.D. () is a Spanish football team in Alicante, in the autonomous community of Valencian Community. Founded on 25 October 1922, it currently plays in Segunda División RFEF – Group 3 and plays its hom ...

have been fierce rivals for a long time. Their rivalry, known as the Derbi de la provincia de Alicante, began way back in the 1925/26 season when Elche CF joined the official regional league. Since then, these teams have clashed over a hundred times. The rivalry between Elche CF and

Real Murcia CF Real Murcia Club de Fútbol, S.A.D., commonly known as Real Murcia (, "Royal Murcia"), is a Spanish football club based in Murcia, in the Region of Murcia, Región de Murcia. Founded in 1919, it currently plays in Primera División RFEF, Prime ...

is a historical one. Their first official match was during the 1928–29 season. Their frequent meetings, known as the Derbi del Sureste (Southeast Derby), make this fixture the most played in the history of the

. Another of the most notable rivalries is with

Levante UD Levante Unión Deportiva, S.A.D. (, ca-valencia, Llevant Unió Esportiva ) is a List of football clubs in Spain, Spanish football club in Valencia, in the Valencian Community, namesake autonomous community. Founded on 9 September 1909, Levante ...

. These teams have a long history of intense regional competition across various divisions, including Primera, Segunda, and Segunda B, creating a fierce atmosphere both on the pitch and in the stands. Elche CF's rivalries with Hércules and

stem from regional proximity, while their rivalry with Levante developed over numerous competitive clashes. The rivalry with

Granada CF Granada Club de Fútbol, S.A.D. (), known simply as Granada, is a Spanish football club based in the city of Granada, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, that plays in the Segunda División, after being relegated from La Liga in the 2021� ...

ignited during the tense 2010-11 Segunda División season, culminating in the Play-off final.

Kit suppliers and shirt sponsors

References

External links

Official website

Futbolme team profile

{{Segunda División de España Football clubs in the Valencian Community La Liga clubs Association football clubs established in 1923 1923 establishments in Spain Segunda División clubs

History

Foundation and early years

1959–78: La Liga

80s and 90s: severe financial crisis

2010s: return to the top flight

Seasons

Season-by-season

Current squad

Reserve team

Other players under contract

Out on loan

Coaching staff

Honours

International players

Coaches

Reserve team

Rivalries

Kit suppliers and shirt sponsors

See also

References

External links