It is the 11th time the Spanish domestic cup competition’s showpiece event is being hosted at the home of Atletico Madrid with the finalists appearing in 5 of them.
For the 11th time in Spanish top flight football history, Vicente Calderon has been chosen as the hosts of the annual Copa del Rey. Barcelona and Athletic Bilbao have a rich history in the competition with 25 and 23 honours, and have played in
the Madrid stadium five times at the same stage.
La Blaugrana have the claim for more appearances at the home of Atletico Madrid, taking part three times before with success in only one of them. Los Leones have also enjoyed mixed emotions in the Capital stadium, winning one and ending up as the losing
side in the other cup finale.
Athletic Bilbao take precedence as they played in the final before their rivals, beating Castellon 2-0 in 1973. Arieta and Zubiaga scored to lay claim for the prestigious trophy.
The Basque entity was in the showpiece event’s final again four years down the road in 1977. However, they were made to bite the dust at the hands of Real Betis. The match ended in dramatic conditions as the score was level after normal and extra time, and
it took 20 penalties to decide on the victor.
With the ignominy of a final defeat haunting Athletic Bilbao, Barca have had worse fortunes in the Spanish capital. La Blaugrana made their first appearance at the Vicente Calderon in the cup final in 1974 and were embarrassingly defeated by a resilient
Real Madrid with a 4-0 score line.
The Catalans returned to the stadium on June 18, 1981 and were more successfully in that appearance. Barcelona imposed themselves in the meeting as they ran riot in the 3-1 drubbing of Sporting Gijon.
Quini executed his beloved Sporting with a brace (44 'and 59'), while http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Esteban-c12907 completed his tireless outing with a 66th minute goal. Maceda scored the consolation goal for the Asturias side in 50.
In their latest outing at the http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Barcelona-c38604 took on the challenge of Real Zaragoza in 1986. The match ended in the favour of the Aragonese club, who lifted the title in a 3-1 win.
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