Getafe CF

180px
Full name	Getafe Club de Fútbol S.A.D.
Nickname(s)	Azulones (The Dark Blues), El Geta
Founded	1983
Ground	Coliseum Alfonso Pérez, Getafe, Madrid, Spain (Capacity: 17,700)
Owner	The Emirates Group
Chairman	Ángel Torres
Manager	Luis García Plaza
League	La Liga
2011–12	La Liga, 11th
Home colours Away colours Third colours
Current season

Getafe Club de Fútbol is a Spanish La Liga football club based in Getafe, a city in the Madrid metropolitan area, founded in 1946 and refounded in 1983.

In the top level since 2004–05, it holds home games at the Coliseum Alfonso Pérez.

On April 25, 2011 the club was bought by the Dubai-based Royal Emirates Group for between €70 and €90 million euros.^[1][2]

History[link]

This article or section may be slanted towards recent events. Please try to keep recent events in historical perspective. (August 2008)

Beginnings[link]

The first season of play for Getafe Club de Fútbol was in 1945, when five Getafe locals, Enrique Condes García, Aurelio Miranda Olavaria, Antonio Corridor Lozano, Manuel Serrano Vergara and Miguel Cubero Francés, decided to form a team of the area while meeting at the "La Marquesina" bar. Officially founded on February 24, 1946, the club was named Club Getafe Deportivo.^[3]

The club originally played in Campo del Regimiento de Artillería, which lacked goal posts. Shortly after, the club moved to San Isidro, housed in the current Municipal Sports Center of San Isidro. Here, Club Getafe was promoted to the third division following their victory against CP Villarrobledo in the 1956/57 season. Getafe was nearly promoted to the Segunda during 1957/58, but was defeated by C.D. Almería.^[4]

On September 2, 1970, the club inaugurated its own stadium after being promoted back to the Tercera División. Presided by chairman Francisco Vara, Las Margaritas was won a 3–1 victory over Michelín. The team survived in the third level that season, and six years later gained a historic promotion to second division.^[5]

Second Division[link]

Club Getafe Deportivo played six seasons in the Segunda División (Second Division), with little success. From 1976–1982, they placed below tenth level all six years.

In 1978, they advanced to play against Barcelona in the Copa del Rey Round of 16. Playing at home in the first leg, Getafe drew with a star-studded Barcelona team 3–3, before travelling away for the Second Leg and being thrashed 8–0 at the Nou Camp.

At the conclusion of the 1981/82 season, players having not been paid, Getafe was automatically relegated and subsequently liquidated.

Meanwhile, on September 1, 1976, a new club was founded in the National Sports Council and the Regional Federation of Castille. The club was called Peña Madridista Getafe (the Real Madrid supporter's club of Getafe). This club played for four seasons in various divisions, until taking the name Club Deportivo Peña Getafe, and played under this name for a further two seasons. On July 10, 1982, they joined forces with the much older Club Getafe Promesas, and were registered again in the Regional Federation of Castille.^[6]

Present existence[link]

Based on the merger the previous year, the present Getafe Club de Fútbol was officially founded on July 8, 1983, after passing through the general partners assembly.^[6]

Starting in the regional leagues in 1983/84, Getafe was promoted for four consecutive seasons until reaching Segunda División B. The club started a new period with its promotion into Segunda in 1994/95, staying only two years.^[7] Threatening absolute disappearance just a few years later in 1997, Getafe survived relegation into the fourth level Tercera División following a two-legged playoff victory over Huesca.

Meanwhile, Getafe's current stadium, the Coliseum Alfonso Pérez, was inaugurated on January 1, 1998.^[8]

Returning to the second division for 1999/00, Getafe lasted another two seasons. One year later, however, they would return, following an amazing promotion during 2001/02 during which one of their players, Sebastián "Sebas" Gómez, was murdered, and controversy regarding unpaid payments of players following a debt of 3 million euros.^[9]

Consolidating their position after one year, Getafe had a fantastic season in Segunda. At the top of the table for most of the year, the side travelled to the Canary Islands on the final matchday needing a win to assure a historic promotion to the first division. Amazingly, they defeated Tenerife 5–3 with five goals from Sergio Pachón,^[10] thus becoming along with Real Madrid, Atlético de Madrid and Rayo Vallecano the fourth team from the Community of Madrid and the first of them from outside of the capital to ever play in La Liga .^[11] With this promotion, Getafe had ascended the whole Spanish football pyramid, achieving this feat in only twenty years.

La Liga[link]

The club started 2004–05 poorly, lying at the bottom of the table. Home wins over Espanyol, Athletic Bilbao, Valencia and Real Madrid,^[12] followed by a sole away win of the season over Athletic Bilbao,^[13] saw Getafe climb to finish 13th, being the only promoted side to avoid relegation. At the end of the season the club lost coach Flores, and several players to rival clubs.^[14] In Getafe's next season the club briefly topped the table^[15] before slipping to finish 9th.^[16] During the 2006 World Cup, Argentine-born Mariano Pernía became Getafe's first ever Spanish international,^[17] before moving to Atlético Madrid.^[18]

In 2006–07 Getafe again finished ninth in the league,^[19] conceding only 33 goals in 38 matches and goalkeeper Roberto "Pato" Abbondanzieri was awarded the Zamora Trophy, having recorded 12 clean sheets. The highlight of the club's season was reaching the Copa del Rey 2006-07 final, a competition in which Getafe had never even reached the quarter-finals before. The run included a two-legged semi-final against Barcelona in which Getafe lost the first leg 5–2 at the Camp Nou^[20] before producing a 4–0 rout in the second leg at the Coliseum.^[21] Getafe lost their first ever major final 1–0 to Sevilla in the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium.^[22] Through this the club qualified for the following season's UEFA Cup qualification, as Sevilla had already qualified for the UEFA Champions' League through their league position.

The following season, coach Bernd Schuster left after two seasons to become head coach at Real Madrid,^[23] and Getafe appointed Michael Laudrup as his replacement.^[24] Under Laudrup's leadership Getafe again finished the league mid-table. In the UEFA Cup, the team managed to progress to the quarterfinals after finishing top of Group G, only losing once,^[25] setting up a tie against four-times European Cup winners Bayern Munich. Getafe drew the away leg 1–1,^[26] thanks to an injury time equaliser from Cosmin Contra. In the second leg Rubén de la Red was sent off after six minutes. Contra put Getafe ahead just before halftime, but in the 89th minute Franck Ribéry equalised, sending the game into extra time. Two quick goals, from Javier Casquero and substitute Braulio, gave Getafe a 3–1 lead but Bayern pulled a goal back from Luca Toni, before Toni again scored seconds before the end of extra time, giving Bayern an away goals win.^[27] Getafe also had successful run in the Copa del Rey, reaching the final for a second year running. In the final, at the Vicente Calderón Stadium, Getafe were beaten 3–1 by Valencia.^[28]

Stadium[link]

Getafe play at the Coliseum Alfonso Pérez, located in Getafe. Its pitch dimensions are 105x70 metres. The stadium was inaugurated on January 1, 1998, named after the Spanish international (and of Real Madrid fame) Alfonso Pérez. Though he never played for or against Getafe, or even in the stadium, he is perhaps the most famous footballer to come out of the area and was at the height of his career during the mid-1990s.^[8]

Before playing in the Coliseum, Getafe played their home matches at the nearby Estadio de las Margaritas, part of the greater Sports City of Las Margaritas. The Coliseum was subsequently built as a natural extension to the much smaller facilities at Las Margaritas. Since its foundation, the stadium has had numerous renovations, and now seats 14,400 people and several thousand more standing. As such, the exact capacity of the is variable and ambiguous. Getafe generally fill the stadium for local matches against Real and Atlético Madrid, as well as against Barcelona, most famously in the 2006–07 Cup semifinal. For the first time in their history, Getafe pre-sold out the whole of the Coliseum before their Second Leg match against Bayern Munich in the UEFA Cup Quarter-final.^[29]

Getafe president Ángel Torres has expressed interest in upgrading the Coliseum to a much greater 20,000 seat arena, in conjunction with Madrid's bid for the 2012 Olympic Games.^[30] The failure of this bid and poor crowd averages has put this redevelopment in doubt.

Getafe use the nearby Sports City when training. These facilities include several training pitches with both grass and artificial turf, full medical rooms and recuperation facilities.

Supporters[link]

This unreferenced section requires citations to ensure verifiability.

Commonly called Marea Azul, or Azulones, Getafe supporters have steadily grown to their team. The team has 18 peñas (supporter clubs), and 12,000 socios (associates). Former Madrid player Francisco Pavón is a well-known Getafe associate, while Fernando Alonso and Rafael Nadal have attended matches at the Coliseum in the past.

Getafe supporters have grown far beyond the area and are now known to have fans in Australia, Sweden, Finland, Argentina, Scotland, Denmark, United States and Mexico. In 2007, a peña was founded in Venezuela to extend the worldwide club reach.

Getafe also created controversy in 2007 when their season ticket campaign included biblical references of Abraham, Moses and Jesus sacrificing themselves for the team. The club responded by withdrawing the first scene involving Abraham.

Upon important or famous victories, Getafe fans celebrate at the Cibelina statue in the town centre. Prior to the 2007 Cup final, Torres implored the fans to "tear down the Cibelina" upon victory, promising to pay for a new design. During that final, thousands of supporters rushed to get tickets and packed into the Santiago Bernabéu, yet were vastly outnumbered by Sevillistas. However, those who failed to get tickets – most of which went to season ticket holders for the 2007/08 campaign – were able to watch the match on a big screen in Getafe's central square.

Getafe has also a small group of Ultras supporters, called Comandos Azules. (Blue commandos).

Rivalries[link]

Historically, due to their close geographical position, Getafe has always held a strong rivalry with Leganés. They played out numerous encounters in the lower division, before the two teams fortunes began to contrast as Getafe gained ascendency and Leganés began to deteriorate.

In the first division, the side has held some tremendous matches in the last few years with Real Madrid, with the ledger being most recently squared at 3 wins each. Real Madrid's greater stature, budget and squad has never stopped Getafe from often playing their best football against their "bigger brother". Getafe and Atlético Madrid joined together in rivalry with Real Madrid.

In addition to this, Getafe has developed somewhat of a rivalry with Barcelona, which culminated in their famous 4–0 victory over their more fancied opponents during the 2006–07 Copa del Rey semi-final. Also, Valencia has succumbed numerous times to el Geta, often quite heavily, as was the case during the 2006–07 Copa del Rey, which ensured Getafe's first ever appearance in the Copa's quarter-finals with a 2–4 win at the Mestalla. This result was turned around in the 2008 Copa del Rey final, however, as Valencia would deny Getafe their first ever trophy with a 3–1 victory. This rivalry is propped up healthily by the regular transfer of Getafe players (and coach Quique Sánchez Flores) to Valencia.

European Cups History[link]

UEFA Cup / UEFA Europa League:

Season	Round	Country	Club	Home	Away	Aggregate
2007–08	Play-off		Twente	1–0	2–3 (aet)	3–3 (a)
	Group		Tottenham Hotspur		2–1	1st
			Hapoel Tel Aviv	1–2
			Aalborg		2–1
			Anderlecht	2–1
	1/16		AEK Athens	3–0	1–1	4–1
	1/8		Benfica	1–0	2–1	3–1
	1/4		Bayern Munich	3–3 (aet)	1–1	4–4 (a)
2010–11	Play-off		APOEL	1–0	1–1 (aet)	2–1
	Group		Odense	2–1	1–1	3rd
			Young Boys	1–0	0–2
			Stuttgart	0–3	0–1

Achievements[link]

• Copa del Rey

Runners-up (2): 2006–07, 2007–08

• Segunda División B – Group 1

Winners: 1998–99

• Zamora Trophy for Roberto Abbondanzieri in 2006–07

Recent seasons[link]

Season		Pos.	Pl.	W	D	L	GS	GA	P	Cup	Notes
1983/84	2R	1	-	-	-	-	-	-	62	Did not enter	Promoted
1984/85	1R	1	-	-	-	-	-	-	59	Did not enter	Promoted
1985/86	RP	1	-	-	-	-	-	-	56	Did not enter	Promoted
1986/87	3	6	38	17	10	11	63	45	44	Did not enter	Promoted
1987/88	2B	3	38	18	11	9	71	41	47	Fourth Round
1988/89	2B	6	38	16	11	11	52	36	43	First Round
1989/90	2B	2	38	18	15	5	54	30	51	Did not enter
1990/91	2B	4	38	16	13	9	45	24	45	Fourth Round	Lost promotion playoffs
1991/92	2B	6	38	17	11	10	56	35	45	Fifth Round
1992/93	2B	4	38	15	17	6	42	28	47	Third Round	Lost promotion playoffs
1993/94	2B	2	38	17	16	5	53	31	50	Fourth Round	Promoted through playoffs
1994/95	2A	18	38	5	20	13	26	42	30	Third Round	Relegation reversed due to league expansion
1995/96	2A	19	38	7	11	20	30	52	32	Second Round	Relegated
1996/97	2B	16	38	12	9	17	44	54	45	First Round	Won relegation playoff
1997/98	2B	7	38	17	6	15	45	40	57	Did not enter
1998/99	2B	1	38	21	9	8	50	23	72	Did not enter	Promoted
1999/00	2A	19	42	13	9	20	39	51	48	Second Round
2000/01	2A	21	42	8	11	23	42	65	35	First Round	Relegated
2001/02	2B	5	38	17	10	11	48	37	61	First Round	Promoted through playoffs
2002/03	2A	11	42	13	14	15	52	55	53	Second Round
2003/04	2A	2	42	20	16	6	55	38	76	First Round	Promoted
2004/05	1A	13	38	12	11	15	38	46	47	Last 16
2005/06	1A	9	38	15	9	14	54	49	54	Last 16
2006/07	1A	9	38	14	10	14	39	33	52	Final	Qualified for 2007–08 UEFA Cup
2007/08	1A	14	38	12	11	15	44	48	47	Final	UEFA Cup Quarter-Finals
2008/09	1A	17	38	10	12	16	50	56	42	Last 16
2009/10	1A	6	38	17	7	14	58	48	58	Semi-Finals	Qualified for 2010–11 Europa League
2010/11	1A	16	38	12	8	18	49	60	44	Round of 16

2R=Segunda Regional
1R=Primera Regional
RP=Regional Preferente

Season to season[link]

• 2 Participations in UEFA Cup
• 8 seasons in La Liga
• 6 seasons in Segunda División
• 11 seasons in Segunda División B
• 1 seasons in Tercera División
• 3 seasons in Categorías Regionales

Current squad[link]

As of 17 April 2012.^[31][32]

Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player 1 GK Oscar Ustari 2 DF Daniel Díaz (vice-captain) 3 DF Mané 4 DF Miguel Torres 5 DF Alexis (on loan from Sevilla FC) 6 MF Mehdi Lacen 7 FW Miku 8 MF Pablo Sarabia 10 MF Jaime Gavilán 12 MF Pedro León (on loan from Real Madrid) 13 GK Jordi Codina 14 FW Javier Arizmendi 15 DF Rafa López

No. Position Player 16 MF Pedro Ríos 17 MF Diego Castro 18 DF Tsepo Masilela (on loan from Maccabi Haifa) 19 FW Daniel Güiza 20 DF Juan Valera 21 MF Míchel 22 MF Javier Casquero (captain) 23 MF Juan Rodríguez 25 GK Miguel Ángel Moyà (on loan from Valencia) 28 MF Abdelaziz Barrada –– DF Alberto Lopo -- DF David Abraham -- MF Ángel Lafita

From Getafe B[link]

Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player 27 DF Álex Pérez 29 DF Álvaro Arroyo

No. Position Player 31 GK Gonzalo Gutiérrez

Out on Loan[link]

Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player 26 MF Alberto Escassi (to Hércules) 27 FW Adrián Sardinero (to Hércules)

No. Position Player DF Pablo Pintos (to Defensor Sporting)

Staff & Board[link]

• Manager: Luis García Plaza
• Assistant Manager: Juan Esnáider
• Goalkeeper Coach: Juan Carlos Arévalo Aguilar
• Trainer: Ángel López Pérez
• President: Ángel Torres Sánchez
• Vice President: Agustín Clemente Alonso

Stadium information[link]

• Name – Coliseum Alfonso Pérez
• City – Getafe
• Capacity – 18,000
• Inauguration – 1998
• Pitch size – 105 x 68 m
• Other Facilities: – Ciudad Deportiva

Kit information[link]

This unreferenced section requires citations to ensure verifiability.

Getafe wear their traditional blue strip. Small strips of white and red also tend to be incorporated in their kit. Generally, their away strip is red, however this has changed in recent years. Their shirt manufacturer is Joma.

Previous sponsors

• Opción (Centro de Ocio) (2004–05)
• PSG (2005–06)
• Grupo Galco (2006–09)
• Burger King (2009–)

Presidents[link]

• Antonio de Miguel (1983–92)
• Francisco Flores (1992-00)
• Felipe González (2000–01)
• Domingo Rebosio (2001)
• Ángel Torres (2002–)

Players[link]

Famous coaches[link]

This section may contain original research. Please improve it by verifying the claims made and adding references. Statements consisting only of original research may be removed. More details may be available on the talk page. (March 2010)

This unreferenced section requires citations to ensure verifiability.

• Quique Sánchez Flores
• Bernd Schuster
• Michael Laudrup

Notes and references[link]

See also[link]

• Getafe CF B
• Getafe Deportivo

External links[link]

Official websites

• Official website (Spanish)
• Getafe at La Liga (Spanish) (English)
• Futbolme team profile (Spanish)
• Getafe CF Team Dubai website
• Peñas federation (Spanish)

Supporter clubs

• Peña El Botellín (Spanish)
• Peña Marea Azul (Spanish)
• Peña Getafeweb (Spanish)
• Comandos Azules (Spanish)

General fansites

• SuperGeta.com (Spanish)
• Azulones.com (Spanish)
• Danish fansite (Danish)
• Getafe at SvenskaFans (Swedish)
• Scottish fansite
• Estadios de Espana