Copa del Rey
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The Copa del Rey is an annual cup competition for Spanish football teams. Its full name is Copa de S.M. El Rey Don Juan Carlos I (His Majesty The King Juan Carlos I's Cup). It was initially known as the Copa del Ayuntamiento de Madrid (Madrid's City Council's Cup). Between 1905 and 1932 it was known as the Copa de S.M. El Rey Alfonso XIII (His Majesty The King Alfonso XIII's Cup). During the Second Spanish Republic it was known as the Copa del Presidente de la República (Republic President's Cup) or Copa de España (Spanish Cup) for short and during the Franco years it was known as the Copa de S.E. El Generalísimo or Copa del Generalísimo (The General's Cup). Spanish basketball teams compete for the Copa del Rey de Baloncesto.
History
The competition was first played for in 1902 after Carlos Padrós, later president of Madrid FC, suggested a football competition to celebrate the coronation of Alfonso XIII. Four other teams joined Madrid FC for the first competition: FC Barcelona, Club Español de Fútbol, Club Vizcaya and New Foot-Ball de Madrid. The competition featured the first recorded game between FC Barcelona and Madrid FC, with the former emerging 3-1 winners. Club Vizcaya eventually beat FC Barcelona in the final.Athletic Bilbao were declared winners in 1904 after their opponents Club Español de Madrid failed to show up. In both 1910 and 1913 there was a spilt among the clubs and two rival associations, the Unión Española de Clubs de Fútbol and the Federación Española de Fútbol, organised rival competitions, the Copa UECF and the Copa FEF. In 1937 during the Spanish Civil War clubs in the Republican area of Spain entered the Copa de España Libre, with Levante UD beating their city rivals Valencia CF 1-0 in the final. This competition has never been officilly recognised by the RFEF. No competition was played in 1938.
FC Barcelona have won the cup 24 times. Athletic Bilbao have won it 23 times. Throughout the history of the competition there has been 12 actual trophies. Of these four have been awarded permanently to FC Barcelona, three to Athletic Bilbao and one to Real Madrid, all for winning the competition three times in a row and/or on and five separate occasions. Club Vizcaya were awarded the first trophy as inaugural winners, Sevilla FC were awarded the Trofeo del Generalísimo in 1939 and Atletico Madrid, winners the previous year, were awarded the 11th trophy following the death of Franco.
Format
Before the formation of the first La Liga in 1928, the competition was effectively a national championship. Teams qualified to enter via their regional leagues. Over the years, various formats, including group stages have been used. Unlike the FA Cup, entry is limited. Only teams from the Primera Division, Segunda A, six teams from the Segunda B and the Tercera Division champions are invited to enter. The early rounds are one-off games with teams from the lower divisions given home advantage. The round of 16, the quarter finals and semi-finals are played over two legs. The final is a one-off game played at a neutral venue. The winners qualify for both the Supercopa de España and the UEFA Cup the following season.2005/2006 Copa del Rey
Performance By Club
Winners
- FC Barcelona/ Barcelona CF
- *1910, 1912, 1913, 1920, 1922, 1925, 1926, 1928, 1942, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1957, 1959, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1978, 1981, 1983, 1988, 1990, 1997, 1998: 24
- Athletic Bilbao/Atlético Bilbao/Club Vizcaya
- *1903, 1904, 1910, 1911, 1914, 1915, 1916, 1921, 1923, 1930, 1931, 1932, 1933, 1943, 1944, 1945, 1950, 1955, 1956, 1958, 1969, 1973, 1984: 23
- Real Madrid/Madrid CF/Madrid FC
- *1905, 1906, 1907, 1908, 1917, 1934, 1936, 1946, 1947, 1962, 1970, 1974, 1975, 1980, 1982, 1989, 1993: 17
- Atlético Madrid
- *1960, 1961, 1965, 1972, 1976, 1985, 1991, 1992, 1996: 9
- Valencia CF
- * 1941, 1949, 1954, 1967, 1979, 1999: 6
- Real Zaragoza
- *1964, 1966, 1986, 1994, 2001, 2004: 6
- Real Unión/Racing de Irún
- *1913, 1918, 1924, 1927: 4
- RCD Espanyol/RCD Español
- *1929, 1940, 2000, 2006: 4
- Sevilla FC/Sevilla CF
- *1935, 1939, 1948: 3
- Real Betis
- *1977, 2005: 2
- Deportivo La Coruña
- *1995, 2002: 2
- Real Sociedad/Club Ciclista
- *1909, 1987: 2
- Arenas Club de Getxo
- *1919: 1
- RCD Mallorca
- *2003: 1
Finals
Note on name changes
Real Madrid were originally known as Madrid FC and did not add the Real until 1920. During the Spanish Second Republic the club dropped Real from their name. In 1941 a decree issued by Franco banned the use of non-Spanish language names. FC Barcelona and Sevilla FC became CF Barcelona and Sevilla CF and Athletic Bilbao changed the spelling of their prefix to Atlético. RCD Espanyol were known as RCD Español until 1995.
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