Athletic have won 25 consecutive single-match Cup ties. The lions will have a chance to continue this long streak this Saturday in the round of 32 matchup against UD Logroñés in Las Gaunas. Valverde’s team won the last edition of the KO tournament after defeating Mallorca in April in a penalty shootout.
You have to go back to October 7, 2003 to find the last cup match where the Bilbao team was eliminated in a single match. Athletic was then eliminated by Gimnástica de Torrelavega at El Malecón. The rojiblancos lost 2-1 in what marked Valverde’s debut on the rojiblanco bench so far this tournament.
The Lions have always progressed in the Cup since then, as a single-match tie. In these two decades they left six teams in the First Division: Barça (three times), Real Madrid, Betis, Espanyol, Valencia and Deportivo Alavés. Eight of these confrontations took place in San Mamés and two away from Bilbao (Villamarín and Mestalla).
Others among their rivals are Gimnástica Segoviana and Cultural Leonesa (2004-05); Real Union and Hospitalet (2005-06); Intercity, Sestao River, Elche and Tenerife (2019-20); Ibiza and Alcoyano (2020-21); Royal Spot (2021-22); Alzira, Sestao River and Eldense (2022-23); and Rubí, Cayón and Eibar (2023-24).
Source: La Verdad
I am Shawn Partain, a journalist and content creator working for the Today Times Live. I specialize in sports journalism, writing articles that cover major sporting events and news stories. With a passion for storytelling and an eye for detail, I strive to be accurate and insightful in my work.
