Recreativo de Huelva

Real Club Recreativo de Huelva is Spain's oldest football club, founded in 1889. Known as El Decano (the dean of Spanish football), it played seasons in La Liga and was the finalist of the Copa del Rey in 2003.

History

Recreativo de Huelva was founded on December 23, 1889, in the port city of Huelva, in Andalusia, by workers and British engineers linked to the Rio Tinto mines. As Spain's oldest active football club, it received the nickname El Decano. Throughout most of its history, the club moved through regional and lower divisions of Spanish football. The first major glory came in 1978, when Recreativo achieved an unprecedented promotion to the Spanish First Division, playing in La Liga in the 1978-79 season. The early 2000s marked the club's most successful phase. In 2003, Recreativo reached the Copa del Rey final, defeated by Mallorca, in one of the greatest achievements in its history. Between 2006 and 2009, it experienced its longest period in the elite division, including its best La Liga campaign in the 2006-07 season. Serious financial problems in the 2010s led the club to lower divisions, but its passionate fan base and its historical significance as a pioneer of Spanish football keep El Decano as a symbol of the sport in the country. Its stadium, the Nuevo Colombino, was inaugurated in 2001, on the banks of the Odiel River.