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Rayo Vallecano de Madrid, S.A.D. (), often abbreviated to Rayo (Spanish for "thunderbolt"), 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
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 ...
, in the neighbourhood of
Vallecas Vallecas was a municipality of Spain that disappeared as such in 1950, when its annexation to the Municipality of Madrid was effectuated. Nowadays it is a large neighborhood of Madrid composed of two districts: Puente de Vallecas (population ...
. Rayo was founded on 29 May 1924, and currently compete 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's ...
following promotion from the 2020–21 Segunda División. Home games are held at the 14,708-seater
Campo de Fútbol de Vallecas Campo de Fútbol de Vallecas (originally Nuevo Estadio de Vallecas and previously Estadio Teresa Rivero) is a football stadium in the Madrid district of Puente de Vallecas, Spain. It currently hosts football matches and is the home of Primera ...
stadium. Rayo has competed in one European competition, 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 Solid, solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, porcela ...
in the 2000–01 season. The club made it to the quarter-finals before losing to fellow Spanish club Alavés 4–2 on aggregate. By historical standard, Rayo is the third best club in Community of Madrid, after
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 ...
and
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 ...
.


History


Establishment and early years

Rayo Vallecano was founded on 29 May 1924 in the hometown of Prudencia Priego, wife of the club's first president Julián Huerta. Greatly inspired by River Plate (a Football club from
Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
), in 1949, after an agreement 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 ...
, a red diagonal stripe was added to the team's kit, and the club reached
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 ...
for the first time in its history.


Yo-yo years

One of the perennial yo-yo clubs of Spanish football, and always in the shadow of the two biggest clubs in the city (
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 ...
and Atlético Madrid), Rayo Vallecano spent many years during the 1980s and 1990s moving back and forth between
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 ...
and
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 ...
. The 1983-84 season was the worst during the 1980s. The club finished in the last position in Segunda División and was relegated to Segunda División B. Due to a tragedy Rayo Vallecano turned out to be
Laurie Cunningham Laurence Paul Cunningham (8 March 1956 – 15 July 1989) was an English professional footballer. A left winger, he notably played in England, France and Spain, where he became the first ever British player to sign for Real Madrid. Cunningham ...
's last club; he was killed in a car crash just outside Madrid in 1989, after a sole season. He had recently won an
F.A. Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competiti ...
winners medal with
Wimbledon F.C. Wimbledon Football Club was an English football club formed in Wimbledon, south-west London, in 1889 and based at Plough Lane from 1912 to 1991. Founded as Wimbledon Old Centrals, the club were a non-League team for most of their history. ...
in England the previous year and had also represented neighbours Real Madrid for four years. They appeared to have consolidated their top flight status after gaining promotion in 1999, and the team's most successful season came in 2000–01 when they reached the quarter-finals of 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 Solid, solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, porcela ...
, going out only to eventual runners-up Alavés; Rayo finished ninth in the previous campaign, but entered the competition via the fair play draw.


2003–11: Segunda División and below

However, the club shortly thereafter fell on hard times, enduring successive relegations in
2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...
and
2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...
. For 2005–06 manager Míchel, a Real Madrid legend in the 1980s and '90s, was hired. Rayo finished the 2006–07 season in second place in
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 ...
, winning the
promotion play-off 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 ...
semifinal but losing in the final to
Eibar Eibar ( eu, Eibar, es, Éibar) is a city and municipality within the province of Gipuzkoa, in the Basque Country of Spain. It is the head town of Debabarrena, one of the '' eskualde / comarca'' of Gipuzkoa. Eibar has 27,138 inhabitants ( Eustat ...
(1–2 aggregate). The following campaign, the team returned to division two after a four-year absence after a victorious run in the playoffs, disposing of
Benidorm Benidorm is a town and municipality in the province of Alicante, Valencia, on the Mediterranean coast of Spain. Benidorm has been a tourist destination within Spain since 1925, when its port was extended and the first hotels were built, though ...
in the semi-final and Zamora in the last game 2–1 on aggregate. In its first seasons back in the second tier of Spanish football, Rayo finished comfortably, often either in or just outside the promotion places. In
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 ...
, the team ranked in second position and returned to the top flight after an eight-year absence, only trailing champions
Real Betis Real Betis Balompié, known as Real Betis () or just Betis, is a Spanish professional football club based in Seville in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Founded in 1907, it plays in La Liga. It holds home games at the Estadio Benito Vill ...
in spite of very serious economic problems.


2011–: La Liga and Segunda División yo-yo

In March 2014,
Huawei Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. ( ; ) is a Chinese multinational technology corporation headquartered in Shenzhen, Guangdong, China. It designs, develops, produces and sells telecommunications equipment, consumer electronics and various smar ...
agreed to sponsor Rayo Vallecano for two league matches against Real Madrid and
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 ...
. In August 2015, Rayo Vallecano purchased the majority of Oklahoma City FC, a NASL expansion franchise which had yet to officially play a game renaming the club to
Rayo OKC Rayo OKC, also known as Rayo Oklahoma City, was an American professional soccer team based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. They joined the North American Soccer League (NASL) – the second tier of the American soccer pyramid – beginning w ...
, despite the stadium increasingly needing work. It was the first ever entry of a Spanish club into the American sports market and mirrored a 2013 sponsorship agreement with Qbao in terms of expanding the club's profile overseas. Rayo OKC folded after a year due to Rayo Vallecano's relegation from La Liga and a dispute between the co-owners led to less finance for the U.S. side. In May 2016, Rayo Vallecano were relegated to the Segunda División, finishing 18th in the
2015–16 La Liga The 2015–16 La Liga football season (known as the ''Liga BBVA'' for sponsorship reasons) was the 85th since its establishment. Barcelona were the defending champions. It started on 21 August 2015 and concluded on 15 May 2016. Barcelona retain ...
season. This ended their five-year streak in La Liga, their longest ever stay in the top-flight. Their first season back in the second division was a poor one, with both problems on the field and off, and they finished in 12th position. Rayo went through three different managers in the
2016–17 Segunda División The 2016–17 Segunda División season, also known as LaLiga 1, 2, 3 for sponsorship reasons, was the 86th since its establishment. The fixtures were announced on 15 July 2016. Name Previously named Liga Adelante, the competition was renamed LaL ...
season before finally settling on club legend Míchel. He revived the club from the relegation places to 12th, almost making the playoffs. At the start of the
2017–18 Segunda División The 2017–18 Segunda División season, also known as LaLiga 1, 2, 3 for sponsorship reasons, was the 87th season of the Spanish football second division since its establishment. Name Previously named Liga Adelante, the competition was renamed L ...
season, the club appointed their recently retired goalkeeper David Cobeño as the sporting director of the club. They secured their promotion with a 1-0 over
CD Lugo Club Deportivo Lugo is a Spanish football team based in Lugo, in the autonomous community of Galicia. Founded on 8 July 1953, it plays in Segunda División, holding home games at '' Estadio Anxo Carro''. History The new board of directors was o ...
with one game remaining. That season the club won Segunda División with 76 points in 42 games. On 20 March 2019, the club appointed
Paco Jémez Francisco "Paco" Jémez Martín (born 18 April 1970) is a Spanish football manager and former player who played as a central defender. He is the manager of Iranian club Tractor. Over 11 seasons, he played 269 La Liga matches in representation o ...
as head coach, and on 4 May, Rayo was relegated back to the Segunda División after losing 4–1 to
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 ...
, eventually finishing last In August 2020, the club appointed Andoni Iraola as head coach. They finished sixth and won promotion in the playoffs against
Girona FC Girona Futbol Club, S.A.D. is a professional football club based in Girona, Catalonia, Spain. Founded on 23 July 1930, it plays in La Liga, to which they gained promotion in the 2022 Segunda División play-offs. Girona holds its home matches at ...
; despite losing the first leg at home 1–2, the team came back to win the second leg 2-0 away to claim a place in La Liga for 2021–22. In February 2022, Iraola's side defeated
RCD Mallorca Real Club Deportivo Mallorca, S.A.D. (, ca, Reial Club Deportiu Mallorca , ''Royal Sporting Club Mallorca''), commonly known as Real Mallorca or just Mallorca is a Spanish professional football club based in Palma on the island of Majorca in ...
to make the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey; it was the second time in club history and first since 1982.


Club background

*''Agrupación Deportiva El Rayo'' (29 May 1924 – 13 November 1947) *''Agrupación Deportiva Rayo Vallecano'' (13 November 1947 – 1995) *''Rayo Vallecano de Madrid'' (1995 – Present) N.B. Affiliate of
Club Atlético de Madrid Club may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Club'' (magazine) * Club, a '' Yie Ar Kung-Fu'' character * Clubs (suit), a suit of playing cards * Club music * "Club", by Kelsea Ballerini from the album ''kelsea'' Brands and enterprises ...
in 1949–50


Honours


League

*
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 ...
**Winners (1): 2017–18 ** Runners-up: 1988–89, 1991–92, 1994–95,
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 ...
*
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 ...
**Winners (4): 1955-56, 1964–65, 1984–85, 2007–08 Regional Titles * Workers Federation of Soccer (1): 1931-1932 * First Regional Division (1): 1948-1949 * Second Regional Division (1): 1940-1941 * Copa de Castilla (5): 1952-1953, 1967-1968, 1970-1971, 1972-1973, 1981-1982 * Madrid Cup (2): 1952-1953, 1966-1967 * Copa Ramón Triana (2): 1971-1972, 1973-1974


Season to season

---- *20 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's ...
'' *35 seasons in
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 ...
*5 seasons in
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 ...
*11 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 Di ...
(third level before 1977–78)


European history


Current squad


Reserve team


Out on loan


Current technical staff


Miguel Ángel Martín
Miguel García


Notable former players

Note: this list includes players that have played at least 100 league games and/or have reached international status.


Coaches


Club presidents


Stadium

Campo de Fútbol de Vallecas Campo de Fútbol de Vallecas (originally Nuevo Estadio de Vallecas and previously Estadio Teresa Rivero) is a football stadium in the Madrid district of Puente de Vallecas, Spain. It currently hosts football matches and is the home of Primera ...
is a football stadium located on Calle Payaso Fofó 1, Vallecas. Opened on 10 May 1976, at first it was called "New Stadium Vallecas", but in January 2004, 13 years after the arrival of the Ruiz-Mateos family in 1991, it changed denominations, as the wife was also named by her husband, businessman
José María José María (abbreviated José Mª) is a Spanish language male given name, usually considered a single given name rather than two names, and is a combination of the Spanish names of Joseph and Mary, the parents of Jesus Christ.Rafael Falcón, Chr ...
, the first woman president of an elite football team. It has a capacity of 14,708 spectators in an all-seated format, and dimensions of 102×64 m. Additionally, one of the goal ends does not have a grandstand, just a big wall with information panels. In June 2009, the club announced plans for the construction of a new stadium.


Anthems and songs

Although most people recognise the supporting songs by ska-punk band
Ska-P Ska-P () is a Spanish ska punk band formed in 1994 in Vallecas, a district of Madrid, by a group of friends from Madrid, Navarre and Euskadi. Review by Chris Trueat Allmusic The band can be categorized, politically, as an anti-establishment mu ...
(''Rayo Vallecano'' and ''Como un rayo''), Rayo Vallecano has an official anthem which played at their home stadium before matches. The club is also known for chanting the song "La Vida Pirata" ( en, "The Pirate Life"), a song about pirates, which the ''Bukaneros'' are named after. Spanish: ''La vida pirata es la vida mejor (bis)'' ''sin trabajar (bis)'' ''Sin estudiar (bis)'' ''Con la botella de ron (bis)'' ''Soy capitán (bis)'' ''del Santa Inés (bis)'' ''Y en cada puerto tengo una mujer (bis)'' ''La rubia es (bis)'' ''Fenomenal (bis)'' ''Y la morena tampoco esta mal (bis)'' ''Las inglesas con su seriedad (bis)'' ''Y las francesas que todo lo dan (bis)'' ''Si alguna vez (bis)'' ''Me he de casar (bis)'' ''Me he de casar (bis)'' ''Con la del Rayo, una, una y nada más (bis).'' English: 'The pirate life is the best life (bis)'' ''without working (bis)'' ''without studying (bis)'' ''With the bottle of rum (bis)'' ''I am captain (bis)'' ''of the "Santa Inés"' (bis)'' ''and in each port, I have a woman (bis) '' ''the blonde is (bis)'' ''phenomenal (bis)'' ''and the brunette is not bad either (bis)'' ''The English women with their seriousness (bis)'' ''And the French women who give everything (bis)'' ''If ever (bis)'' ''I have to marry (bis) '' ''I have to marry (bis)'' ''with the one of Rayo, one, one and no more (bis).'


Club culture, support and community work

Rayo's
ultras Ultras are a type of association football fans who are renowned for their fanatical support. The term originated in Italy, but is used worldwide to describe predominantly organised fans of association football teams. The behavioural tende ...
, the ''Bukaneros'', are known for their
left-wing Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in soci ...
views and often display
political Politics (from , ) is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. The branch of social science that studies ...
messages and other
protests A protest (also called a demonstration, remonstration or remonstrance) is a public expression of objection, disapproval or dissent towards an idea or action, typically a political one. Protests can be thought of as acts of coopera ...
, mainly against the
commercialisation Commercialization or commercialisation is the process of introducing a new product or production method into commerce—making it available on the market. The term often connotes especially entry into the mass market (as opposed to entry into ear ...
of
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 ...
. Rayo's
ultras Ultras are a type of association football fans who are renowned for their fanatical support. The term originated in Italy, but is used worldwide to describe predominantly organised fans of association football teams. The behavioural tende ...
often display
anti-racism Anti-racism encompasses a range of ideas and political actions which are meant to counter racial prejudice, systemic racism, and the oppression of specific racial groups. Anti-racism is usually structured around conscious efforts and deliberate a ...
and
anti-fascist Anti-fascism is a political movement in opposition to fascist ideologies, groups and individuals. Beginning in European countries in the 1920s, it was at its most significant shortly before and during World War II, where the Axis powers were ...
messages, however, and are often
ostracised Ostracism ( el, ὀστρακισμός, ''ostrakismos'') was an Athenian democracy, Athenian democratic procedure in which any citizen could be exile, expelled from the city-state of Athens for ten years. While some instances clearly expressed ...
by the government as a result. The club is known for being one of the last local
neighbourhood A neighbourhood (British English, Irish English, Australian English and Canadian English) or neighborhood (American English; see spelling differences) is a geographically localised community within a larger city, town, suburb or rural are ...
clubs in
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 ...
, with the club representing the
barrio ''Barrio'' () is a Spanish language, Spanish word that means "Quarter (urban subdivision), quarter" or "neighborhood". In the modern Spanish language, it is generally defined as each area of a city, usually delimited by functional (e.g. residenti ...
and its
working-class The working class (or labouring class) comprises those engaged in manual-labour occupations or industrial work, who are remunerated via waged or salaried contracts. Working-class occupations (see also " Designation of workers by collar colou ...
status. The Spanish
anti-fascist Anti-fascism is a political movement in opposition to fascist ideologies, groups and individuals. Beginning in European countries in the 1920s, it was at its most significant shortly before and during World War II, where the Axis powers were ...
band Band or BAND may refer to: Places *Bánd, a village in Hungary *Band, Iran, a village in Urmia County, West Azerbaijan Province, Iran * Band, Mureș, a commune in Romania *Band-e Majid Khan, a village in Bukan County, West Azerbaijan Province, I ...
Ska-P Ska-P () is a Spanish ska punk band formed in 1994 in Vallecas, a district of Madrid, by a group of friends from Madrid, Navarre and Euskadi. Review by Chris Trueat Allmusic The band can be categorized, politically, as an anti-establishment mu ...
are outspoken supporters of the club and have dedicated two songs to it, named '' Como un Rayo'' and ''Rayo Vallecano''. Rayo's players are often involved in charity work, one instance of this is that the then club
captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...
Roberto Trashorras, amongst other players, regularly helps out at a homeless shelter. In late March 2012, in support of the 2011–12 Spanish protests, the squad decided to take one day off from training to join the demonstrations. In 2014, 85-year-old
Vallecas Vallecas was a municipality of Spain that disappeared as such in 1950, when its annexation to the Municipality of Madrid was effectuated. Nowadays it is a large neighborhood of Madrid composed of two districts: Puente de Vallecas (population ...
resident Carmen Martínez Ayuso was evicted from her house after living there since the 1960s. Rayo Vallecano and particularly coach
Paco Jémez Francisco "Paco" Jémez Martín (born 18 April 1970) is a Spanish football manager and former player who played as a central defender. He is the manager of Iranian club Tractor. Over 11 seasons, he played 269 La Liga matches in representation o ...
were touched by her story, and subsequently offered to fund Martínez for the foreseeable future.


Notes


References


External links


Official website

Official Radio website

Official Community VK

Futbolme team profile

Pasión por el Rayo – Non official Website - Rayo Vallecano News

Rayo Herald – Updated club info
{{Authority control Football clubs in Madrid Association football clubs established in 1924 1924 establishments in Spain Segunda División clubs La Liga clubs