SD Amorebieta

Full name	Sociedad Deportiva Amorebieta
Nickname(s)	Urdinak Azules (Blues)
Founded	4 January 1925 (4 January 1925)
Ground	Instalaciones de Lezama Campo 2, Bilbao, Basque Country, Spain
Capacity	3,250
President	Jon Larrea
Head coach	Jandro Castro
League	Segunda División
2022–23	Primera Federación – Group 2, 1st of 20 (champions)
Website	Club website
Home colours Away colours Third colours

Sociedad Deportiva Amorebieta is a Spanish football team based in Amorebieta-Etxano, in the Basque Country. Founded in 1925, it currently plays in Segunda División, holding home games temporarily at the Lezama Facilities outside Bilbao (their own ground Campo Municipal de Urritxe was not approved for use at that level).

History

Amorebieta was founded in 1925 after the dissolution of Sociedad Deportiva Beti-Arin (founded on 2 December 1923). The Zornotzarra club, alongside 21 other clubs in Biscay, joined the Biscayan Football Federation.

In the 1926–27 season, the club made an outstanding campaign in its second competitive year. It had as its main rival FBC Durango, who finished in the top position after a tiebreaker match, after both teams totalled 14 points in the season. Despite finishing second, Amorebieta clinched the first promotion of its history, rising one step inside the Biscayan Regional category to play, the next year, in the Preferente C division.

In 1962–63, Amorebieta played in the semi-finals of the Spanish Amateur Championship^[1] against Real Madrid's farm team, losing 0–2 in Vallecas and managing a 2–2 draw in the second leg, thus being eliminated.

Eighteen years later, the team finished second in Preferente, and played in a promotion play-off against Mondragón CF, which won 4–3 in the first leg; however, a 2–0 home triumph in the second match promoted, for the second time in its history, the club to the fourth division, where it remained for the following three decades.

On 29 May 2011, Amorebieta was promoted for the first time to Segunda División B after beating CD Manacor in the 2011 Tercera División play-offs. In its first season in the third tier, the club finished in the fourth position in Group 2 and qualified for the promotion play-offs, but was eliminated in the first round by Balompédica Linense. In the 2017–18 season Amorebieta finished in the 14th position in Segunda División B, Group 2.^[2] The following 2018–19 campaign was more successful, as the club finished eighth.^[3]

On 22 May 2021, Amorebieta was promoted to the Segunda División for the first time ever by defeating Badajoz in the final round of the promotion play-offs.^[4] Immediately they faced their first problem of where to play, as their basic Urritxe ground did not meet requirements by several measures and would be prohibitive to upgrade, and none of the possible options, including Ipurua in Eibar and Lezama outside Bilbao, was an ideal solution.^[5] On 17 June, the club reached an agreement with Athletic for the utilisation of Lezama's ground 2, after it was approved by the LFP.^[6] On 21 May 2022, Amorebieta was relegated back to the third tier. On 27 May 2023, the team bounced back to the second division (they would play at Lezama again in 2023–24).

Season to season

• 2 seasons in Segunda División
• 1 season in Primera Federación
• 10 seasons in Segunda División B
• 36 seasons in Tercera División

Current squad

As of 2 September 2023.^[7]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 1 GK  ESP Unai Marino 2 DF  ESP Jorge Mier 3 DF  ESP Xabi Etxeita 4 DF  ESP Manu Hernando 7 MF  ESP Josué Dorrio 8 MF  ESP Erik Morán 9 FW  ESP Eneko Jauregi 10 MF  AUS Ryan Edwards 11 MF  ESP Iker Seguín (captain) 13 GK  ESP Jonmi Magunagoitia 14 MF  ESP Javi Eraso

No. Pos. Nation Player 15 DF  ESP Álvaro Núñez 16 DF  ESP Daniel Lasure 17 MF  ESP Rayco Rodríguez 19 FW  ESP Javier Avilés (on loan from Leganés) 20 MF  GHA Kwasi Sibo 21 MF  ESP Àlex Carbonell 22 MF  ESP Jon Morcillo (on loan from Athletic Bilbao) 24 DF  ESP Josep Gayá (on loan from Mallorca) 27 MF  COL Luis Quintero (on loan from Villarreal) 28 DF  ESP Félix Garreta (on loan from Betis) 30 GK  ESP Pablo Cuñat (on loan from Levante)

Current technical staff

Position	Staff
Head coach	Jandro Castro
Assistant coach	Unai Zubiaur
Fitness coach	Xanti Pérez
Goalkeeping coach	Rufino Lekué
Doctor	Markel Arregi
Physiotherapist	Danel Etxeberria Juan Sebastián Conde
Kit man	Ioritz Madariaga
Match delegate	Mikel Arregi
Psychologist	Zigor Egiarte
Sport readaptator	Álex González

Last updated: 8 November 2021
Source: SD Amorebieta (in Spanish)

Honours & achievements

• Promotion to Segunda División: 2020–21,^[4] 2022–23
• Primera Federación:^{[lower-alpha 1]} 2022–23
• Tercera División:^{[lower-alpha 2]} 2010–11^{[lower-alpha 3]}
• Promotion to Preferente C: 1926–27
• Promotion to Tercera División: 1961–62, 1980–81

Former players

Perhap's Amorebieta's most successful former player is Xabier Etxeita, who began his career at his hometown club before moving on to Athletic Bilbao, where he was a winner of the 2015 Supercopa de España and was capped by Spain. Amorebieta have close ties with Athletic, and several players have appeared for both clubs.

Reserve team

Amorebieta's reserve team, SD Amorebieta B, was founded in 2003 and plays in the Primera División de Vizcaya, which corresponds to the eighth division.^[8] In September 2021, shortly after the B-team returned to action after one year of inactivity, a second reserve team called SD Amorebieta C was incorporated into the club's structure.^[9]

References

External links

• Official website (in Basque)
• Futbolme team profile (in Spanish)
• Estadios de España (in English)

43°13′17″N 2°43′30″W / 43.221348°N 2.724883°W / 43.221348; -2.724883