The 1903 Copa del Rey Final was the first final 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 ...

, the Spanish football cup competition. The match took place on 8 April 1903 at the Hipódromo,

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), an ...

. The match was contested by

Athletic Bilbao Athletic Club ( eu, Bilboko Athletic Kluba; es, Athletic Club de Bilbao), commonly known as Athletic Bilbao or just Athletic, is a professional football club based in the city of Bilbao in the Basque Country of Spain. They are known as ''Los Le ...

and Madrid FC. Madrid FC scored twice in the first half to lead the match 0–2 down at the break. However, a crucial harangue at the break by the Athletic Bilbao

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 ...

and president

Juan Astorquia Juan Astorquia Landabaso (June 1876 - 23 October 1905), also known as Juanito Astorquia, was a Spanish footballer who played as a forward for Athletic Club. He is widely regarded as one of the most important figures in the amateur beginnings of ...

, inspired Athletic to pull off a great emotional comeback in the second half that turned the game around, thus lifting the trophy for the first time with a 3–2 victory. Athletic Bilbao claims this trophy to be their second in a row, although the

Royal Spanish Football Federation 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 190 ...

doesn't recognize the previous tournament as official. Six Athletic players who played in this final had been proclaimed champions of the Coronation Cup in the previous year with Club Bizcaya. This match has been identified as a catalyst for the establishment a few weeks later of what would eventually become

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 ...

, after some Madrid-based Basque students among the spectators were inspired by the comeback victory by Athletic Bilbao and decided to form a local branch of the club.

Summary

In front of 5,000 expectant spectators, it was a Madrid FC side captained by Guatemala

Federico Revuelto Federico Revuelto (born 1883) was a Guatemalan footballer who played for the Madrid Football Club from 1902 to 1912. Biography Federico Revuelto was born in Cuyotenango, Suchitepéquez, Guatemala in 1883. Revuelto initially started play ...

who came out stronger in the first half, developing a brilliant game that was converted in a 2–0 lead at the break, with Marqués de Valdeterrazo opening the scoring in the 15th minute, while Antonio Neyra doubled their advantage just before the break. Madrid FC decided to go defensive in the second half, feeling they could hold a 2–0 lead against a demoralized Athletic Bilbao team, but instead, they found an Athletic side even more driven than before, largely thanks to a crucial harangue at the break by their captain and president Juan Astorquia. Madrid was able to resist Athletic's relentless siege for only 10 minutes, as the Basque club found a goal when Raymond Cazeaux scored in the 55th minute. The Athletic attack kept colliding again and again with the Madrid defense, and despite some fine saves from

goalkeeper In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting ...

Arthur Johnson Arthur Johnson may refer to: Sports *Arthur Johnson (athletic director), athletic director for Temple Owls *Arthur Johnson (boxer) (born 1966), U.S. Olympic boxer * Arthur Johnson (rugby league), Widnes and Great Britain 1908/09 - 1922/23 *Arthur J ...

, and great defensive work from the Giralt brothers (

Mario is a character created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. He is the title character of the '' Mario'' franchise and the mascot of Japanese video game company Nintendo. Mario has appeared in over 200 video games since his c ...

Armando Armando may refer to: * Armando (given name) * Armando (artist) (1929–2018), the name used by Dutch artist Herman Dirk van Dodeweerd * Armando (producer) Armando Gallop (sometimes written as Armando Gallup) (February 12, 1970 – December 17, ...

and

José 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 vernac ...

), the people from

Bilbao ) , motto = , image_map = , mapsize = 275 px , map_caption = Interactive map outlining Bilbao , pushpin_map = Spain Basque Country#Spain#Europe , pushpin_map_caption ...

managed to find the equalizer with 20 minutes to go thanks to

Eduardo Montejo Eduardo María Montejo Aristegui (15 August 1879 - 1962) was a Spanish footballer who played as a forward for Athletic Club. Although little has been recorded of his life, he was one of the most important footballers in the amateur beginnings of ...

. Athletic did not let go of the siege and pressed for a winner, which they found in the 80th minute when Alejandro de la Sota scored the goal that sent the people from Bilbao into euphoria. The result remained unchanged until the final whistle, and Athletic Bilbao was proclaimed as the first official champion of Spain.

Match details

References

External links

RSSSF.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Copa Del Rey Final 1903

1903 Events January * January 1 – Edward VII is proclaimed Emperor of India. * January 19 – The first west–east transatlantic radio broadcast is made from the United States to England (the first east–west broadcast having been ...

1902–03 in Spanish football Athletic Bilbao matches Real Madrid CF matches

Summary

Match details

See also

References

External links