Although in Spain the Madrid "Real" club is called the "Royal" club, however in the country's cup competitions, named in honor of the king, clubs without a crown in their logos are much more successful.
Specifically, "Barcelona" and Bilbao "Athletic" are the most titled teams in the King's Cup tournament.
The portal fcbarcelona.lt presents an updated collection of historical tournament statistics and interesting facts.
- Although this season's King's Cup final will be played at the "Camp Nou" stadium belonging to "Barcelona," the hosts of the match will not be Catalans, but Basques. You can read more about why this happened here.
- "Barcelona," having triumphed in the King's Cup tournament 26 times, is the Spanish club with the most trophies. The last time the Catalan team won the King's Cup was in 2012. In that final, they defeated the Basques from Bilbao with a score of 3:0. Pedro Rodriguez scored two goals in that final for the winners, while Lionel Messi once beat the opponents' goalkeeper;
- "Athletic" has 23 King's cups in their collection. The Basque team won their last victory in this tournament in 1984, when they defeated "Barcelona" 1:0 in the final;
- On their way to this year's final, "Barcelona" eliminated the teams of "Huesca," "Elche," Madrid "Atletico," and "Villarreal." The Catalan club has won all 8 matches played;
- Ernesto Valverde's players eliminated "Alcoyano," Vigo "Celta," "Malaga," and Barcelona's "Espanyol" on their way to the final. The Basques have celebrated 4 victories in the King's Cup tournament this season, playing draw in 3 games and suffering 1 defeat. However, even such an unconvincing statistic did not prevent the Bilbao team from reaching the final.
- In the King's Cup final, the clubs from Catalonia and the Basque Country have played against each other seven times - in 1920, 1932, 1942, 1953, 1984, 2009, and 2012. "Barcelona" won five decisive cup matches, while Bilbao "Athletic" won twice - in 1932 and 1984;
- The most times the King's Cup was won in the ranks of "Barcelona" were Paulino Alcantara, Joan Segarra, and Josep Samitier. All three of them celebrated victories in this tournament five times. Those who triumphed four times in this tournament include Ladislao Kubala, Piera, Antoni Ramallets, Sagi, Sancho, and Ramon Torralba;
- The most productive player in the King's Cup tournament remains Bilbao "Athletic" legend Telmo Zarra, who scored 81 goals between 1939-1957. Second place is taken by Josep Samitier Vilalta, who represented "Barcelona" and Madrid "Real" with 65 goals, and the third place in terms of productivity is held by the former Sporting and Barcelona striker Quini - 55 accurate strikes.
- Paradoxically, none of the ten most productive King's Cup tournament players currently continuing their careers and playing in "La Liga" make it into the list.
- It is already clear that "Barcelona" and Bilbao "Athletic" clubs will meet in a two-match duel for the country's Super Cup. "Barcelona" earned this right as the winner of "La Liga" and the finalist of the King's Cup, and precisely for the latter reason, "Athletic" will compete for the Super Cup, receiving this right as a participant in the King's Cup final regardless of the match result.
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