Atotxa Stadium

First match of Primera División in Atotxa 1929

Atotxa (Spanish: Atocha) was a football stadium in San Sebastián, Spain. It was the home ground of Real Sociedad until 1993 when it was replaced by Anoeta Stadium. It had superseded Ondarreta Stadium 80 years earlier. It had a capacity of 17,000 spectators. [1]

Public at Atotxa for a hockey game in 1930

History

The Municipal Stadium of Atocha was the second stadium that Real Sociedad had in their history, preceded by Ondarreta, located in the neighborhood of the old town of San Sebastián. Later the team moved to the Eguia neighborhood. The stadium of Atocha was constructed in the grounds of an old velodrome. It was inaugurated on October 5, 1913 with a match between Real Sociedad and Athletic Club Bilbao, which finalized with a 3–3 result. Curiously, the author of the first goal in Atocha was the same as that of the first match in San Mamés: the mythical player of Athletic Bilbao Rafael Moreno Aranzadi also known by his nickname "Pichichi"[2] – the top scorer award for the Spanish Primera División bears that name in his honour.[3][4]

It reached an approximate capacity of 27,000 spectators.

The last goal in an official match in this stadium was scored by Real Sociedad striker Oceano Andrade da Cruz, on June 13, 1993, in a League game against Club Deportivo Tenerife with a final result of 3-1 for the locals . Although a few days later, on June 22, a game was held between Real Sociedad and the Basque Country as a farewell.[3]

From the 1993-94 season the Real Sociedad de Fútbol would play in the new stadium of Anoeta. The old stadium of Atocha was still preserved for a few more years, serving as a training ground for a rugby team, before it was demolished to build public housing.

For 40 years an ex-player of Real Sociedad, Amadeo Labarta Rey of Pasaia was the caretaker of the stadium, and had his home inside the stadium.[3]

Real Sociedad game at Atotxa in 1952

References

  1. ↑ http://lafutbolteca.com/real-sociedad-de-futbol-s-a-d/
  2. ↑ "El viejo San Mamés cumpliría hoy cien años" [Old San Mamés would be 100 years old today]. El Mundo (in Spanish). 21 August 2013. Retrieved 14 December 2017.
  3. 1 2 3 "Estadio de Atocha, San Sebastián - el domingo a las cinco". el domingo a las cinco (in Spanish). 2013-09-04. Retrieved 2017-06-30.
  4. ↑ "El viejo Atocha abrió sus puertas hace un siglo" [Old Atocha opened its doors a century ago] (in Spanish). El Diario Vasco. 12 October 2013. Retrieved 14 December 2017.

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