Real Betis Balompié (commonly known as ""Real Betis"") is a professional football club based in Seville, the capital of Andalusia, Spain. It competes in La Liga (the Spanish Primera División) and plays its home matches at Estadio Benito Villamarín.
Team History
In 1909, a group of management members from Sevilla FC left the club due to ideological differences and founded Betis Football Club locally. In 1913, the team received recognition from the Spanish royal family. In 1914, the club officially merged with another local team, Sevilla Balompié, to form Real Betis Balompié. In its early years, Real Betis mainly competed in regional tournaments in Andalusia. During the 1931-32 season, the team was promoted to La Liga for the first time. In the 1934-35 season, it won its first La Liga title in club history.
After the Spanish Civil War, Real Betis struggled with inconsistent performances due to poor financial conditions, even dropping to the third-tier Segunda División B in the late 1940s. In the 1957-58 season, Real Betis returned to La Liga after a 15-season absence. In the 1976-77 season, the club won the Copa del Rey (Spanish King’s Cup) for the first time. In the 1977-78 season, Real Betis reached the quarter-finals of the European Cup Winners’ Cup.
Nowadays
In the 2004-05 season, Real Betis finished 4th in La Liga, qualifying for the UEFA Champions League for the first time. In the 2005-06 Champions League, they finished 3rd in their group and advanced to the knockout stage of the UEFA Cup. In the UEFA Cup round of 16, Real Betis lost to FC Steaua București, failing to reach the quarter-finals. In the 2021-22 Copa del Rey, Real Betis defeated Valencia CF on penalties in the final to claim the title.
In the 2024-25 UEFA Europa Conference League, Real Betis started from the qualifying rounds and progressed all the way to the final, where they lost to Chelsea FC, missing out on their first European trophy in club history.
