Eibar And President Amaia Gorostiza Are Dreaming About La Liga Again

When the humble Spanish club Eibar, nestled in the northern Basque Country hills, tumbled from La Liga into the Segunda division in 2021, it was reasonable to think its moment in the sun had come and gone.

Two years down the road, and that may still be the case. Although, despite a worrying drop in form, the team guided by Amaia Gorostiza—its charismatic female president—still has an opportunity to break into the first division for only the second time in its history when it enters the all-important promotion playoffs alongside Alavés, Levante and Albacete.

Born in Eibar, Gorostiza rose to relative prominence when her warmth and hands-on approach reached viewers in the fly-on-the-wall Amazon documentary series Six Dreams back in 2018. Were she and Eibar to make the big-time again, she would become the longest-serving woman president of three representatives in La Liga next season: Valencia’s Layhoon Chan and Granada’s Sophia Yang being the others.

As veteran Javi Lara’s free-kick bent into the top corner against Real Sociedad in 2014, Eibar’s elite adventure began with a sparkle. There was a buzz around the newbie team, lacking grand infrastructure and financial muscle but a refreshing, vibrant sight from the sidelines. The ensuing success came from graft, mind. In the north, where it rains half the year, a determined Gorostiza was visible around the training field, overseeing a group knuckling down to secure seven consecutive campaigns in La Liga, the first ending in 18th-place relegation and a remarkable reinstatement after financially troubled Elche took its place.

Elche’s bounceback to La Liga should not be remarkable, given its respectable squad spending allocation this term—just over €13 million ($14 million). But it’s been typically shrewd, not shelling out big bucks on players. More significantly, it’s gone from winning three on the bounce to nine games without a victory in the season’s final stretch. It’s hanging on under coach Gaizka Garitano, so perfectly timing a second ascent would mark another memorable chapter for the 83-year-old club, which has spent the most part in the lower categories—far from the top-flight riches.

Missing out would not change much for Gorostiza. Instead, promotion would only further cement her status as one of Spanish soccer’s most successful women. Over in Valencia, Chan and the board operate under billionaire Peter Lim’s much-maligned ownership. While in Granada, Yang has overseen a resurgent team nearing promotion but is just 11 months into the role. Meanwhile, Leganés and the most experienced female president Victoria Pavón will stay in Segunda. Eibar and Gorostiza—a steadying presence since taking the reins—remain a big deal.

So do some others in a shape-shifting league. Andorra, a project guided by former Barcelona man Gerard Piqué, is on course for a mid-table finish after making the standard only a year ago. A well-backed, growing brand under star turned businessman Piqué’s Kosmos company, its leading goalscorer Sinan Bakis has also garnered interest from more established Getafe and Rayo Vallecano a level up. At the other end of the spectrum, Ibiza’s soccer team is going back down.

What’s perhaps more eye-opening is Málaga, however. Relegated, and with fans protesting against the ongoing directionless sporting plan, it will feature in the semi-professional Primera Federation from August—worlds away from its days battling at the Champions League business end. In short, it’s now a poor, disoriented club with an uninterested owner—Sheikh Abdullah Al-Thani—who won’t budge. It also highlights that competing in Spanish soccer has little to do with tradition and reputation.

That’s no concern to Eibar, though, among those vying for a golden ticket and the financial boost that comes with playing Barcelona and Real Madrid on weekends rather than Villarreal’s second-string showing. As those in the division above scramble to avoid the drop, Eibar and those around it are dreaming once more.