Athletic Club Femenino
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| Full name | Athletic Club Femenino |
|---|---|
| Nickname(s) |
Las Leonas (The Lionesses) Neskak (Girls) Rojiblancas (Red-Whites) |
| Founded | 2002 |
| Ground | Instalaciones de Lezama, Spain |
| Capacity | 1,500 |
| President | Josu Urrutia |
| Manager | Joseba Agirre |
| League | Primera División |
| 2016–17 | Primera División, 5th |
Athletic Club Femenino is the women's football (soccer) section of Athletic Bilbao, competing in the Spanish First Division. Athletic is one of the most successful women's teams in Spain, with five championships. Just as with the men's team, their official policy is to sign players native to or trained in football in the greater Basque Country. The teams play at the club's facilities in Lezama on the outskirts of Bilbao.
The team was founded in 2000 as Leioa EFT after CD Sondika disbanded its women's team, which had played in the defunct División de Honor in the 1990s. After Leoia gained promotion to the new Superliga Femenina in just two years, it was absorbed by Athletic Bilbao. At that time a reserve team, Athletic B, was also introduced - they currently compete in Group 2 of the Segunda División, the regionalised second tier.
In their debut season Athletic won the championship, and successfully defended the title in the next two seasons, becoming the first team to be awarded the trophy to keep permanently. After a disappointing 2006 season, Athletic won its fourth title in 2007. As a result of their title wins they made four appearances in the UEFA Women's Cup, being knocked out in the group stages by 1. FFC Frankfurt in 2004, Djurgårdens IF in 2005, SV Saestum in 2006 and ASDCF Bardolino in 2008.
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