¡Aupa Athletic! [Otra Vez]

Athletic Club vs. FC Barcelona: Copa del Rey Round of 16

Over the last several weeks Athletic Club have continued to advance in the Copa del Rey. They hosted FC Barcelona in the quarterfinals on January 24 and we watched the match from a bar in the Plaza Unamuno. The bar had multiple screens with audio and was quite full with supporters. Athletic Club scored in the first minute, before we’d even gotten our beers. Unfortunately, Barcelona scored an equalizer in the 26’ and scored a go-ahead goal six minutes later. 

Athletic Club came out strong after the break and scored an equalizer of their own in the 49’. The second half ended with the match tied 2-2. Copa del Rey is a tournament, so the match went to extra time. It wasn’t until stoppage time of the first extra period that Nico Williams scored, giving Athletic Club the lead. Then in stoppage time of the second extra time period Nico assisted on a goal scored by his brother Iñaki, sealing the win for Athletic Club.

The match started at 21:00h [9:00pm] that evening and going to extra time meant it had gotten quite late. Iñaki’s win-sealing goal wasn’t scored until after midnight [la madrugada, en Español]. The bar erupted in celebration when the goal was scored and then cleared out almost immediately two minutes later, following the final whistle. [It was, after all, a Wednesday.]

The win against Barcelona put Athletic Club into the semifinals, which are played over two legs, with each team hosting a match. Athletic Club would travel to Madrid to face Atlético Madrid on February 7 for the first leg of the semifinal round.  

At this point we had a good sense of which bars in our neighborhood show matches. [As mentioned in my first Aupa Athletic post, sports bars aren’t really a thing here.] As usual, the match kicked-off quite late [21:30h/9:30pm], so we decided to watch at a bar near our apartment.

We watched the first half at a bar about a five minute walk away. The match was again played on a Wednesday and, at least in our neighborhood, there didn’t seem to be many fans watching in bars this time. Athletic Club went ahead midway through the first half on a penalty. A few other fans were also watching at the bar we’d chosen, but there was very little celebration.

At halftime, we decided we’d like to find somewhere more lively to watch the second half. We initially planned to cross the river into Casco Viejo, which required walking past our apartment. I suggested that we first look into the closer bars to see if fans had gathered during the match. This ended up being one of the best decisions that we’ve made since moving to Bilbao! 

A good number of older locals were gathered in Bar Erega, watching the match. There was a group seated on stools facing a TV behind the bar. There was another group of older women gathered around a table close to a second TV. Other patrons stood at the bar. We settled into a spot at the bar and ordered two cañas.

A few minutes into the second half, one of the patrons standing near us at the bar started cheering for Atlético Madrid. The table of older women responded immediately, singing Athletic Club’s anthem and starting chants of their own. As this was happening, a friend of the women arrived with a few Athletic Club scarves. Eliott and I were both wearing team shirts and I was wearing my scarf. However, he’d taken his off at the first bar and put it in his coat pocket, because it was warm.

Noticing that he was missing a scarf, one of the women immediately brought one over to him and placed it around his neck. I explained to her that he had one, and pulled his scarf out of his coat pocket to place around his neck. While she approved of his scarf, she insisted that we both wear the scarf that she’d tried to have him wear so that she could take our picture, which she then insisted that she send to me. 

After this exchange she started to talk to us, starting by asking where we’re from. [“¿De dónde sois?”] We talked to her for a while before other patrons approached us to ask “¿De dónde sois?” Before long we’d explained to many of our fellow fans that we’re from DC but are living in Bilbao for at least a year in an apartment just up the street.

The closing minutes of the match were stressful. [Skip to the next paragraph if you don’t care about the actual soccer recap.] The match remained 1-0 heading into second half stoppage time. A VAR review in stoppage turned what would’ve been an opportunity for Atlético Madrid to equalize on a penalty being called-off due to a player being offside. Athletic Club held onto their 1-0 lead and won the match, putting them in a very strong position going into the second leg of the semifinals later this month. 

At the end of the match one of the women whom I’d chatted with brought the bartender over to introduce us. (He had been enthusiastically supporting Athletic Club with a number of different noise makers throughout the match, as well as pacing around the bar, pulling on his hair.) He greeted us very warmly, shared some details about the bar, and It quickly became clear that this would now be our official neighborhood bar.

We’ve stopped by Bar Ereaga a few times since the match, most recently last night after an event with Eliott’s Spanish Class. When we first arrived, I chatted with the bartender about Athletic Club’s most recent La Liga match [a disappointing draw with Almeria on Monday evening.] Though, he was not concerned in the slightest about that outcome. All that matters to him is the 29th, the date of the second leg of the semifinals of the Copa. We only stayed for one round before heading back home. However, during this time we encountered three of the fans whom we’d met a week and a half ago. Each of them approached us, asking if we’d be at the bar to watch the match on the 29th. Obviously we can’t say no!