Amute Stadium (Estadio de Amute in Spanish) was the football stadium of

Real Unión Real Unión Club, S.A.D. is a Spanish football club based in Irun, in the autonomous community of the Basque Country, in the province of Gipuzkoa, near the border with France. Founded on 15 May 1915 it currently plays in Primera División RF ...

, a main team in Spanish football before the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. The club was formed in 1915 following the merger of Irún Sporting Club and Racing Club de Irún. Irún Sporting Club played at the Campo de Amute, which was situated just to the north of town in the village of

Hondarribia Hondarribia (; ; ) is a Spanish town situated on the west shore of the Bidasoa river's estuary, in Gipuzkoa, in the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Autonomous Community. The border town is situated on a little promontory facing Hend ...

, not far from the current site of Hondarribia's airport. The ground opened on 2 January 1910 and hosted the 1915 Copa del Rey Final when

Athletic Bilbao Athletic Club (; ), commonly known as Athletic Bilbao (), or simply Athletic, is a professional Football club (association football), football club based in the city of Bilbao in the Southern Basque Country, Basque Country, Spain. They are known ...

defeated

RCD Español Reial Club Deportiu Espanyol de Barcelona (; "Royal Spanish Sports Club of Barcelona"), commonly known as RCD Espanyol, is a Spanish professional sports club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. The club competes in La Liga, the top tier of Spa ...

with 5-0. Upon forming, Real Unión used Irún Sporting’s Campo de Amute. In 1926, at the peak of their powers,

moved to the other side of Irun and their current

Stadium Gal Stadium Gal is a football stadium in Irun, Gipuzkoa, Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Country, Spain. It is owned by Real Unión, currently in Segunda División B. The capacity of the stadium is 5,500 spectators. The stadium is loca ...

. It was inaugurated 19 September with a match against

FC Barcelona Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly known as FC Barcelona and colloquially as Barça (), is a professional Football club (association football), football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of ...

. There was a strong Anglo influence at the club in the early years, with England great

Steve Bloomer Stephen Bloomer (20 January 1874 – 16 April 1938) was an England international footballer and manager who played for Derby County – becoming their record goalscorer – and Middlesbrough. The anthem " Steve Bloomer's Watchin'" is played a ...

, managing the club for several years in the 1920s. The original structure could have easily passed itself off as an English, that was until the local municipality installed a cycle track in 1950. The Anglo influence may be the reason the title “stadium” is used rather than estadio or campo. That or a Basque refusal to use castellano.

References

{{Real Unión Irun Real Unión Defunct football venues in Spain Sports venues completed in 1910 1910 establishments in Spain 1926 disestablishments in Spain Buildings and structures in Gipuzkoa