Real Racing Club de Santander, S.A.D. (), also known as Racing de Santander () or simply Racing, is a football club based in
Santander
Santander may refer to:
Places
* Santander, Spain, a port city and capital of the autonomous community of Cantabria, Spain
* Santander Department, a department of Colombia
* Santander State, former state of Colombia
* Santander de Quilichao, a m ...
,
Cantabria
Cantabria (, also , , Cantabrian: ) is an autonomous community in northern Spain with Santander as its capital city. It is called a ''comunidad histórica'', a historic community, in its current Statute of Autonomy. It is bordered on the east ...
, Spain, that currently competes in
Segunda División, the second tier of the
Spanish league system. It was founded in 1913. It holds home games at
Campos de Sport de El Sardinero, with a capacity for 22,222 spectators. It is one of the ten founding clubs of
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' ...
.
History
Racing de Santander played its first match on 23 February 1913, losing 1–2 to neighbouring ''Strong''. It was officially founded on 14 June, as ''Santander Racing Club'', appearing in its first tournament during that summer (Luis Redonet Trophy) and being admitted to the
Northern Federation on 14 November, eventually
merging
Merge, merging, or merger may refer to:
Concepts
* Merge (traffic), the reduction of the number of lanes on a road
* Merge (linguistics), a basic syntactic operation in generative syntax in the Minimalist Program
* Merger (politics), the com ...
with Santander Football Club.
![Angel Sanchez Losada](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/89/Angel_Sanchez_Losada.PNG)
In the
1928–29 season, the
Spanish League competition began. After a complicated elimination process to determine the tenth and final team for the new First Division, Racing successively beat
Valencia
Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the autonomous community of Valencia and the third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is also the capital of the province of the same name. The wider urban area al ...
,
Betis and
Sevilla
Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...
. The club was part of the first goalless game in the league, against
Athletic Bilbao.
During the
Second Republic, the classifications of Santander varied. In the
1930–31
Year 193 ( CXCIII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Sosius and Ericius (or, less frequently, year 946 ''Ab urbe condit ...
, It achieved the runner-up position in the Spanish League, tied at 22 points with champion Athletic Bilbao, and third-place
Real Sociedad. This is the highest finish achieved by the club in all its history, trained by the English
Robert Firth and chaired by Fernando Pombo.
They also participated in the International Tournament of Paris, falling in the semifinal to
Slavia of Prague (2–1). In the 1930s, under the presidency of the academic José María de Cossío, it had varied positions, from third place in
(1933–34) to low table rankings. In seasons 1934–35 and 1935–36, Racing played in the
Commonwealth Championship of Castilla-Aragón, in which it finished second in the first season. Meanwhile, in Cantabria a lesser championship was disputed, not qualifying for the
Spanish Cup
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 footb ...
;
Santoña
Santoña is a town in the eastern coast of the autonomous community of Cantabria, on the north coast of Spain. It is situated by the bay of the same name. It is from the capital Santander. Santoña is divided into two zones, an urban plain, and ...
won it. During the
1935–36 season, Racing was the first club in the Spanish league to beat
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 ...
and
Real Madrid in the four league matches (both home and two as a visitor) in the same season: on 8 December 1935 they won 4–0 against Barcelona in the
Campos de Sport de El Sardinero, on 15 December they won in Madrid 2–4, on 8 March 1936 they beat Barcelona 2-3 and on 15 March they defeated Madrid 4–3 at El Sardinero. The only player to score in all matches (one goal in each match, and two in Madrid) was Milucho.
In
1950
Events January
* January 1 – The International Police Association (IPA) – the largest police organization in the world – is formed.
* January 5 – Sverdlovsk plane crash: ''Aeroflot'' Lisunov Li-2 crashes in a snowstorm. All 19 ...
, the
Cantabria
Cantabria (, also , , Cantabrian: ) is an autonomous community in northern Spain with Santander as its capital city. It is called a ''comunidad histórica'', a historic community, in its current Statute of Autonomy. It is bordered on the east ...
ns returned to the top flight after a ten-year absence, scoring 99 goals in only 30 games.
![SantanderRC 1913](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dc/SantanderRC_1913.png)
During the period of
Francoist Spain
Francoist Spain ( es, España franquista), or the Francoist dictatorship (), was the period of Spanish history between 1939 and 1975, when Francisco Franco ruled Spain after the Spanish Civil War with the title . After his death in 1975, Spai ...
, the club was renamed ''Real Santander'' in 1941, because of the prohibition on non-Spanish names. The name was restored in 1973 as the team
returned to the first division one year after
nearly relegating, under young manager
José María Maguregui
José María Maguregui Ibarguchi (16 March 1934 – 30 December 2013) was a Spanish football midfielder and coach.
Playing career
Born in Ugao-Miraballes, Biscay, Maguregui made his professional debuts in 1952 at the age of 18, with Basque Co ...
. Racing was
immediately relegated, And spent the ensuing seasons bouncing between divisions one and two, also
being crowned champions in
Segunda División B (the new third level, created in 1977) in 1991. Veteran
Quique Setién
Enrique "Quique" Setién Solar (; born 27 September 1958) is a Spanish football manager and former player who played as a central midfielder. He is the current manager of La Liga club Villarreal.
As a player, he was nicknamed ''El Maestro'', an ...
returned to his main club the following year, helping it
return to the top flight and scoring in the
1994–95 campaign against
FC Barcelona
Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly referred to as Barcelona and colloquially known as Barça (), is a professional football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of Spanish football.
Found ...
, in a historic 5–0 home win.
Racing was the first Spanish team to wear a sponsor's name on their shirt: German electronics company
Teka on 27 December 1981 away to
Real Madrid (the corporation then sponsored the opponents early in the following decade).
On 25 March 2000, Racing played its 1,000th game in La Liga.
In the 2000s, Racing only played
one season in the second division, winning promotion with Setién as manager. Racing finished the 2005–06 season in the 16th position, just 1 point away from relegation back to Segunda división. The next season was much better, as the club finished 10th, easily retaining its place in the top flight. In
2007–08, under
Marcelino García Toral, it finished in sixth position, thus
qualifying to the
UEFA Cup
A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, clay ...
for the first time ever; additionally the club reached the semifinals of 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 footb ...
twice during this decade, being ousted by eventual runners-up
Getafe CF and
Atlético Madrid in 2008 and 2010, respectively.
On 22 January 2011, Indian business tycoon
Ahsan Ali Syed, founder and chairman of
Western Gulf Advisory, an investment company, purchased Racing de Santander, immediately firing coach
Miguel Ángel Portugal. The
2011–12 season brought with it three different managers, and the side returned to the second level after one full decade in the top division.
At the end of
the following campaign, Racing again finished in 20th position and suffered relegation, also being immersed in a severe institutional and economic crisis. Ending their 22 years in professional league. In spite of that plight, the team was able to reach the quarterfinals in the
2013–14 edition of the domestic cup after ousting top-divisioners
Sevilla FC
Sevilla Fútbol Club () is a Spanish professional football club based in Seville, the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. It plays in Spanish football's top flight, La Liga. Sevilla have won the UEFA E ...
and
UD Almería
Unión Deportiva Almería, S.A.D. () is a Spanish professional football club based in Almería, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Founded on 26 July 1989 and known as ''Almería Club de Fútbol'' until 2001, when it was renamed ''Unión D ...
; in the first leg against the latter, club fans stormed the presidential tribune at ''
Estadio El Sardinero'' and assaulted chairman Ángel Lavín.
On 27 January 2014, Racing's players, citing several months of unpaid wages, announced they would not play their upcoming Cup match unless the club's president and board resigned. Three days later, prior to the second leg against
Real Sociedad and after a 1–3 loss in the first match, Racing players gathered at the centre circle immediately after kick-off and refused to play. Referee
Jesús Gil Manzano suspended the game after one minute, and the home team was given a loss due to forfeit; as a result of the protest the club was fined and banned from
the following edition of the tournament, and on 31 January Lavín was sacked, with former player
Juan Antonio Sañudo
Juan Antonio 'Tuto' Sañudo Herrero (born 13 June 1956) is a Spanish retired footballer who played as a central defender.
Club career
Born in the village of Serdio in Val de San Vicente, Sañudo played 304 La Liga matches over the course of ten ...
being appointed his successor by practically all the shareholders.
![Estadio El Sardinero](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/62/Estadio_El_Sardinero.jpg)
Racing won
their group in the
2013–14 Segunda División B, and won the
playoff
The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...
against
Llagostera
Llagostera is a municipality in the ''comarca'' of the Gironès in Catalonia, Spain. During the 20th century, it was known for the production of cork and derived articles. It is located 20 km south of Girona and 15 km west from the Med ...
to be promoted back to the second tier, but they were immediately relegated in the
2014–15 season. They again took first place in the Segunda B section in
2015–16, but were eliminated in
the promotion playoffs, failing to score a goal across four matches in the ties lost to
Reus
Reus () is the capital of Baix Camp, in the province of Tarragona, in Catalonia, Spain. The area has always been an important producer of wines and spirits, and gained continental importance at the time of the Phylloxera plague. Nowadays it is kno ...
and
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, ...
.
Racing was promoted back to the second division after four years in the third tier in
2018–19, by winning their regional group and defeating
Atlético Baleares in the
promotion playoff
Promotion may refer to:
Marketing
* Promotion (marketing), one of the four marketing mix elements, comprising any type of marketing communication used to inform or persuade target audiences of the relative merits of a product, service, brand or ...
on the
away goals rule, but they were immediately relegated in the
2019–20 season after only winning five games out of 42 and finished in last place. They were unable to bounce back to the second tier immediately, finishing fourth then second in the unique small two-phase group setup during
2020–21 Segunda División B to find themselves remaining at the third level, in the newly formed
Primera División RFEF
Primera may refer to
* Nissan Primera, a car
* Primera Air, a former airline
* Primera división (disambiguation), multiple top division football leagues
* Primera, Texas, a town in Cameron County, Texas
* Alí Primera, Venezuelan musician, compos ...
, for the 2021–22 season. Racing confirmed their finish the season in first place and promoted to
Segunda División, after two years in third division and fighting with
Deportivo La Coruña
''Deportivo'' (Spanish, 'sporting') may refer to:
* Deportivo de La Coruña, commonly known as simply Deportivo, a Spanish football club
* Déportivo, a French rock band
* Deportivo (Mexicable)
Mexicable is a aerial lift line in Ecatepec de Mo ...
for the top spot. On 3 June 2022, Racing took the inaugural Primera División RFEF title with a 3-0 win over
Andorra
, image_flag = Flag of Andorra.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Andorra.svg
, symbol_type = Coat of arms
, national_motto = la, Virtus Unita Fortior, label=none (Latin)"United virtue is stro ...
.
Rivalries
Racing Santander is one of few Spanish teams that have played the majority of their history in La Liga, but do not have a
major rival, mostly because Racing are the only fully professional team from Cantabria, so there isn't much competition between Racing and any other club from that area, with most others playing at the
regionalised fourth level; only
Gimnástica de Torrelavega
Real Sociedad Gimnástica de Torrelavega is a Spanish football team based in Torrelavega, in the autonomous community of Cantabria. Founded on 28 September 1907 it is the oldest football club in the region, and currently plays in Tercera Divisi ...
have ever reached the second tier. However, Racing fans generally consider their biggest rivals to be the two major teams from the
Basque Country,
Real Sociedad and
Athletic Bilbao, due to geographic proximity and the long history between these clubs.
Bilbao
)
, motto =
, image_map =
, mapsize = 275 px
, map_caption = Interactive map outlining Bilbao
, pushpin_map = Spain Basque Country#Spain#Europe
, pushpin_map_caption ...
is the closest city to Santander (approximately ), and the relationship between Racing and Athletic has been described in the past as 'the duel of the North',
although the rivalry is dormant as Racing have not played in the top division since 2012.
There is also a minor rivalry between Racing and the two biggest clubs from neighboring
Asturias
Asturias (, ; ast, Asturies ), officially the Principality of Asturias ( es, Principado de Asturias; ast, Principáu d'Asturies; Galician-Asturian: ''Principao d'Asturias''), is an autonomous community in northwest Spain.
It is coextensiv ...
:
Real Oviedo and
Sporting de Gijón
Real Sporting de Gijón, S.A.D. (), commonly known as Real Sporting, Sporting Gijón, or simply Sporting (although in an international context this can lead to confusion with Sporting Clube de Portugal) is a Spanish football club from Gijón, ...
.
Seasons
Recent seasons
:
Season to season
----
*44 seasons in
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' ...
*36 seasons in
Segunda División
*1 season in
Primera División RFEF
Primera may refer to
* Nissan Primera, a car
* Primera Air, a former airline
* Primera división (disambiguation), multiple top division football leagues
* Primera, Texas, a town in Cameron County, Texas
* Alí Primera, Venezuelan musician, compos ...
*7 seasons in
Segunda División B
*4 seasons in
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 ...
Honours
*
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' ...
** Runners-up:
1930–31
Year 193 ( CXCIII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Sosius and Ericius (or, less frequently, year 946 ''Ab urbe condit ...
*
Segunda División
**Winners (2):
1949–50,
1959–60
** Promoted (6):
1972–73,
1974–75,
1980–81,
1983–84,
1992–93
Year 199 ( CXCIX) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was sometimes known as year 952 '' Ab urbe condita''. The denomination 199 for this year has been used since t ...
,
2001–02
*
Tercera División/Segunda División B/
Primera División RFEF
Primera may refer to
* Nissan Primera, a car
* Primera Air, a former airline
* Primera división (disambiguation), multiple top division football leagues
* Primera, Texas, a town in Cameron County, Texas
* Alí Primera, Venezuelan musician, compos ...
** Winners (3):
1943–44,
1947–48,
1969–70,
2021–22
** Group Winners (4):
1990–91
Year 199 ( CXCIX) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was sometimes known as year 952 '' Ab urbe condita''. The denomination 199 for this year has been used since t ...
,
2013–14,
2015–16,
2018–19
** Promoted (6): 1943–44, 1947–48, 1969–70, 1990–91, 2013–14, 2018–19
*
Cantabrian Championship
** Winners (13): 1922–23, 1923–24, 1924–25, 1925–26, 1926–27, 1927–28, 1928–29, 1929–30, 1930–31, 1932–33, 1933–34, 1938–39, 1939–40
European history
UEFA Europa League
The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. ...
:
Current squad
.
Reserve team
Out on loan
Current technical staff
Notable former players
Note: this list includes players that have appeared in at least 100 league games and/or have reached international status.
World Cup players
The following players have been selected by their country in the
World Cup
A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...
Finals, while playing for Racing Santander.
*
Mutiu Adepoju (
1994
File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which sank in the Baltic Sea; Nelson ...
)
*
Mario Regueiro (
2002)
*
Mehdi Lacen
Medhi Gregory Giuseppe Lacen ( ar, مهدي لحسن; born 15 March 1984) is an Algerian former professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder.
After starting out at Laval, he spent most of his professional career in Spain, repre ...
(
2010)
Former coaches
See also
*
Rayo Cantabria
Rayo Cantabria, formerly known as Real Racing Club de Santander "B" is the reserve team of Racing de Santander, a List of football clubs in Spain, Spanish football team based in Santander, Cantabria, Santander, in the autonomous community of Cant ...
– Racing's reserve team
*
CDE Racing Féminas
Club Deportivo Elemental Racing Féminas is a Spanish women's association football club based in the autonomous community of Cantabria, currently playing in the Segunda División Pro. They are affiliated to Real Racing Club de Santander, although ...
– affiliated women's team
References
External links
Official websiteFutbolme team profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Racing Santander
Sport in Santander, Spain
Football clubs in Cantabria
Association football clubs established in 1913
Organisations based in Spain with royal patronage
1913 establishments in Spain
Segunda División clubs
La Liga clubs
Primera Federación clubs