Basque Identity
Bilbao, the capital of the Basque Country, has a deeply nonconformist history which has helped to shape their distinctive culture that is proudly encouraged to this day. From their political autonomy to their unique language, the Basque Country is unparalleled in their core beliefs, principles and integrity and this way of life trickles down to every facet of society, including football. Athletic Bilbao are one of four Basque clubs represented in Spain’s top flight of football with Real Sociedad, Eibar and Deportivo Alaves making up the other three. However, Athletic Bilbao are unprecedented in that they are the only club to still practice the ‘Basque-only’ player policy, meaning a player must either have been born in the Basque Country, have Basque parentage or have spent a significant amount of time playing in a Basque clubs youth team. This gives Los Rojiblancos a sense of idiosyncrasy - an old fashioned integrity in an ever-changing globalised game.
Athletic Bilbao was born out of the merger between two clubs; Athletic Club and Bilbao Football Club. The former was founded in 1898 by Basque students returning from England who wanted to bring football to the region, whilst the latter was formed by British workers from the northeast who migrated to Bilbao, which was a leading industrial town in the early 20th century. The merging of the two clubs was officially completed in 1903 and was spearheaded by Juan de Astorquia, who would later become the first president of Athletic Bilbao.
The club enjoyed initial success, winning the inaugural Copa del Rey in 1902, which they then won again in 1903 and 1904. After dwindling for a number of years, Athletic Bilbao won the competition again in 1910 and for three successive years between 1914 and 1916. However, in 1911 Athletic Bilbao were accused of fielding ineligible players after a large English contingent featured for the Basque side. Angered by their damaged reputation, the club implemented a ‘Basque-only’ players policy which is still prevalent at the San Mames stadium today.
Since 1919, every single player who has featured for Athletic Bilbao has either been born or raised in the Basque Country in an attempt to pursue a true sense of Basque autonomy. Although it has been purported that this rule would shackle the club in the long-run, Athletic Bilbao remain one of only three founding members to have never been relegated, alongside FC Barcelona and Real Madrid.
Over 100 years after the rules inception, the policy is still treasured by players and staff alike and serves as a proud reminder of the principles that the Basque people live by. Former Sporting Director Jose Maria Amorrortu has stated that “Eighty-five percent of first-team players came through this academy,” which is an incredible achievement. “We take them as young boys and mould them. These figures are just a consequence of our work.” Amorrortu continues, speaking about the importance of core values regarding culture and identity, “I’ve worked at Atlético Madrid and other elite clubs, but nobody has what we have. We have a culture here, an identity. It’s our job to create good people as well as good players, and nobody does that like we do. Family is everything for Basque people and we want to do right by our own people. There’s no greater sense of pride for a boy than playing football for this club.” It is clear that the development is about more than just football, it is about moulding someone into a good person as well as a good football player, with Amorrortu highlighting that “Kids will have roles and responsibilities as soon as they enter the building; whether it’s sorting the kit, cleaning the dressing room or carrying equipment. There’s a rota.”
Conversely, Athletic Bilbao’s rivals Real Sociedad decided to relax their own ‘Basque-only’ policy in 1989 when they signed Irish international John Aldridge from Liverpool. Los Txuri-Urdin explained that this move was a result of the necessity to expand their talent pool in a bid to compete at the pinnacle of Spanish football. However, the potency of this relaxation of the rules was questioned because the club have since failed to reach the same heights of their successful period. This aforementioned victorious period came during the early-mid 1980s which was, ironically, when the ‘Basque-only’ players policy was still in place.
However, the ‘Basque-only’ player policy has not been without its critics, with claims of discrimination being aimed at Athetic Bilbao due to their inability to sign anyone who does not meet their strict rules and regulations. These accusations have been brushed aside by the Basque club, who argue that the ‘Basque-only’ rule is a necessary aspect of Bilbao’s universal appeal and cultural expression. It is about opposing the diminishing effects of globalisation on a football clubs’ culture, principles and traditions. The term ‘Basque Nationalism’ is not about Basque supremacy or superiority, rather it is about preserving their unique identity in a footballing world where a club's roots can be dug up and forgotten, as has been the case with MK Dons, Manchester City and Paris Saint Germain.
To understand why national identity is so important to the Basque Country, one must understand their history. The Basque language is a language-isolate, meaning it is entirely unrelated to any other language in existence and has therefore been a beacon of pride within the region. The sense of Basque Nationalism was heightened during Franciso Franco’s dictatorship in Spain between 1939 and 1975 due to repressive legislation which attempted to diminish the Basque language.
Restrictions were put in place by Franco’s government whereby the Basque language was banned from general discourse, education and publishing. Additionally, it was illegal for new-born babies to be registered under Basque names and tombstone engravings in Basque were removed, effectively removing generations of Basque heritage and preventing future generations of Basque culture and identity.
This inevitably brought the Basque community even closer to the culture and traditions that Athletic Bilbao had harboured since the early 20th Century, with the ‘Basque-only’ rule becoming a beacon of national identity within the clubs fanbase. A poll within the region was undertaken with 76% of Athletic Bilbao fans stating that they would rather be relegated from Spain’s top flight than relax their ‘Basque-only’ rule.
Nevertheless, it must be recognised that the principles Athletic Bilbao bore, such as only signing players with a Basque heritage or with prior experience at Basque clubs, had naturally led to forms of racial discrimination. The club would not field their first black player until 2011 when Jonas Ramalho, who was of Basque and Angolan descent, made his La Liga debut in a 2-1 win against Sevilla. Furthermore, it was not until 2015 that a black player would score a goal for Athletic Bilbao, when Inaki Williams scored in a 2-2 draw against Torino in the Europa League. However, with Williams still at the club and a firm fan-favourite, it has been argued that the racial discrimination was largely due to a general lack of multiculturalism within the Basque Country and throughout Spain as a whole, although this is still disputed.
There have been some notable cases of exclusion at Athletic Bilbao due to a player lacking the necessary requirements to fit the ‘Basque-only’ policy and therefore fail to feature for the club. Most notably, Antoine Greizmann, who was born in Macon in the east of France, was not granted permission to play for the club due to his lack of time spent in Basque youth academies, despite playing for Real Sociedad’s youth team. However, Romanian left-back Cristian Ganea was later signed from Romanian Liga I side FC Viitorul Constanta in January 2018, despite not having any Basque heritage. Ganea had spent time playing youth team football for Basque side Basconia, although he would go on to make only one league appearance before having his contract terminated and joining Greek Super League side Aris.
Moreover, the ‘Basque-only’ player policy has implications in the transfer market, with outgoing players very rarely being sold for anything less than their release clause. Chelsea found out the hard way by parting with £72m in order to sign Athletic Bilbao’s goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalage in August 2018. Additionally, Manchester United paid £32.4m to sign midfielder Ander Herrera and Manchester City spent £58.5m to acquire centre-back Aymeric Laporte in 2016 - a record fee for a defender at the time.
Athletic Bilbao’s ‘Basque-only’ player policy therefore has multifarious reverberations in the social and economic spheres. Despite being the third most successful side in Spanish football history, the clubs success is not solely determined by trophies but the ability to adhere to a unique set of principles and customs that promote national identity. In a footballing world whereby clubs are frequently becoming corporate, nondescript conglomerates that are estranged from the communities in which they reside, Athletic Bilbao remains symbolic of Basque identity.
By Charlie Adey