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Since 1912, the Spanish football club Athletic Bilbao has had an unwritten rule whereby the club will only sign players who were born in the Basque Country or who learned their football skills at a Basque club.
Dec 27, 2023 · It started with players born or raised in Biscay, before Athletic moved to sign established Basque players from clubs outside the region in the 1970s, a policy known as “Operacion Retorno”.
May 16, 2024 · Athletic Club of Bilbao sit in a unique position in the transfer market, with the Basque club only able to sign players of Basque origin or heritage. We explain why Athletic Club have this transfer policy, known as the known as the 'Cantera policy'.
- What Is Athletic Bilbao’s Player Policy?
- Why Does Athletic Bilbao only Have Basque Players?
- What Players Can Athletic Bilbao Sign?
- Do Athletic Bilbao Have Foreign Players?
- Pros + Cons of Bilbao’s Transfer Policy
- Do Any Other Clubs only Sign Local Players?
In 1912, just 14 years after the club formed, Athletic began adhering to a policy of only permitting players born in Spain’s Basque Country (found on the country’s northern border), or who came through the ranks at another Basque club, to play for them. Indeed, there are two photos in the club’s museum showing the last red-and-white lineup includin...
They have their own motto which rather sums it up neatly: “Con cantera y afición, no hace falta importación.” In English, this translates to: “With home-grown talent and local support, there’s no need for imports.” An article on the club’s websitealso speaks of an ‘unbridgeable gap’ between themselves and Real Madrid and Barcelona, but that “One mi...
Any player from the communities of the Basque Country and Navarre in Spain, or the Northern Basque Country in France. Though, it should be noted that this is not policy written into the club’s bylaws, and is an unwritten rule. Yet no candidate for the club’s presidency has ran a campaign promising a move away from this rule, their fans seem to larg...
At time of writing (February 2021), every player in Athletic’s senior men’s team is from the Basque region, while their entire coaching staff are Spaniards. Even Kenan Kodro, a forward currently on loan at Real Vallodolid was born in San Sebastian, despite representing Bosnia and Herzegovina on the international stage. This same applies to Athletic...
The obvious advantage is that it saves money – Athletic’s biggest signing, for instance, is the €32 million paid for defender Inigo Martinez in January 2018; a fairly modest record in today’s climate. That, of course, goes hand-in-hand with the healthy promotion of home-grown talent, club loyalty and moderate Basque nationalism by helping to uphold...
Not as locally as Athletic do – probably the closest recent examples are Chivas de Guadalajara, who only field Mexicans, or fellow Basque club Real Sociedad. Sociedad adopted a similar approach to Athletic from the late 1960s, and won consecutive league titles in the early 1980s under these rules, but it was abandoned in 1989 when they signed Irela...
- Matthew Chandler
Transfers: Overview of all signed and sold players of club Athletic for the current season.
Aug 25, 2024 · Athletic Bilbao is a unique club within European football that relies on Basque-only players. This is a look into how the club survive's with this system.
Jan 8, 2024 · The last-minute signings of Athletic Club that will defend your club's colors next season 2021/22 in LALIGA. Get to know the transfer market live and stay updated with the latest official incorporations of LALIGA EA SPORTS and LALIGA HYPERMOTION!
