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Juan Astorquia
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Juan Astorquia
Juan "Juanito" José Astorquia Landabaso (June 1876 – 23 October 1905) was a Spanish footballer who played as a forward for Athletic Bilbao. He is widely regarded as one of the most important figures in the amateur beginnings of Athletic Club from Bilbao, having been the fundamental driving force behind the foundation of the club in 1898 and its official establishment in 1901, and then serving as the club's first captain until 1904 and as its second president between 1902 and 1903.
Under Astorquia's leadership, Athletic became a dominant team on the national level, captaining the Basque club to triumphs at the 1902 Copa de la Coronación, which was the club's first trophy, and then to back-to-back Copa del Rey titles in 1903 and 1904, contributing decisively in all of these victories. He also worked as a referee. A lover of sports, he was also a fan of sailing and velocipedism.
Juan Astorquia was born in Bilbao in June 1876, and as the son of a well-off family of merchants, he was sent to Britain to complete his studies, doing so in a Catholic college in Manchester. During his four years there, he developed an interest in football, becoming one of the best players in his school thanks to his dribbles and ball control.
In 1896, the 20-year-old Astorquia returned to Bilbao, bringing with him his newly-acquired business knowledge and passion for football, and like many other Bilbaínos, he began to play football in the Hippodrome of Lamiako in Leioa, which at the time was the home of organized football in Biscay. At first, he became a member of an informal group led by Carlos and Manuel Castellanos, the so-called Bilbao Football Club, playing a key role in setting up meetings between them and the workers from the Nervión shipyards. Soon after, however, Astorquia left the club due to his failure to get along with some members of Bilbao FC; the exact reasons behind this decision remain unclear, perhaps it was because he disliked the massive presence of Britons within the club as he wanted to belong to a society with more local representation, or perhaps he was simply eager to lead a club by himself where he could play a greater role. Either way, he went on to become the head of a seven-man committee that founded what would later become Bilbao's first official football club.
A lover of sports, Astorquia also enjoyed both gymnastics and cycling, thus joining both the Gimnásio Zamacois (founded in 1879) and the Bilbao Velocipedista Club (founded in 1885).
In 1898, Astorquia, together with six fellow Basque football enthusiasts and Lamiako regulars who also belonged to the Gimnásio Zamacois, decided to open a football practice center in Lamiako. The club's main sources of recruitment soon became the Gimnásio Zamacois, the largest sports center in Bilbao at that time, and the Velocipedista Club, where Astorquia maintained contacts due to his militancy as a member. Once they had a sufficient number of volunteers, he began to organize football matches against the British workers, which were contested on Sundays in Lamiako. Unlike Bilbao FC, this group of football pioneers was almost entirely made up of players from Biscay, including some newcomers who had come over from cycling.
Although it was founded in 1898, it was not until February 1901, in a meeting held at the Café García, that Astorquia's group, now larger, began conversations to become an official football club. To achieve this result, a commission made up of Astorquia, Goiri, and José María Barquín was formed to prepare regulations for a football society, which were approved on 11 June. The entity's board was subsequently elected, with Astorquia being appointed the team's captain, while Alfred Mills, the only foreigner to be part of the board, was named the vice-captain. Since the figure of coach as we know it today did not exist at the time, it was Astorquia and Mills, as captains of the clubs, who were in charge of making up the line-ups and dictating the tactics to be followed.
After obtaining the permission of the Civil Government, the club was officially established on 5 September 1901, in the meeting held at Café García, in which a group of 33 football pioneers, including Astorquia and his brother, Luis, signed the documents to make it official, and hence Athletic Club was born.
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Juan Astorquia
Juan "Juanito" José Astorquia Landabaso (June 1876 – 23 October 1905) was a Spanish footballer who played as a forward for Athletic Bilbao. He is widely regarded as one of the most important figures in the amateur beginnings of Athletic Club from Bilbao, having been the fundamental driving force behind the foundation of the club in 1898 and its official establishment in 1901, and then serving as the club's first captain until 1904 and as its second president between 1902 and 1903.
Under Astorquia's leadership, Athletic became a dominant team on the national level, captaining the Basque club to triumphs at the 1902 Copa de la Coronación, which was the club's first trophy, and then to back-to-back Copa del Rey titles in 1903 and 1904, contributing decisively in all of these victories. He also worked as a referee. A lover of sports, he was also a fan of sailing and velocipedism.
Juan Astorquia was born in Bilbao in June 1876, and as the son of a well-off family of merchants, he was sent to Britain to complete his studies, doing so in a Catholic college in Manchester. During his four years there, he developed an interest in football, becoming one of the best players in his school thanks to his dribbles and ball control.
In 1896, the 20-year-old Astorquia returned to Bilbao, bringing with him his newly-acquired business knowledge and passion for football, and like many other Bilbaínos, he began to play football in the Hippodrome of Lamiako in Leioa, which at the time was the home of organized football in Biscay. At first, he became a member of an informal group led by Carlos and Manuel Castellanos, the so-called Bilbao Football Club, playing a key role in setting up meetings between them and the workers from the Nervión shipyards. Soon after, however, Astorquia left the club due to his failure to get along with some members of Bilbao FC; the exact reasons behind this decision remain unclear, perhaps it was because he disliked the massive presence of Britons within the club as he wanted to belong to a society with more local representation, or perhaps he was simply eager to lead a club by himself where he could play a greater role. Either way, he went on to become the head of a seven-man committee that founded what would later become Bilbao's first official football club.
A lover of sports, Astorquia also enjoyed both gymnastics and cycling, thus joining both the Gimnásio Zamacois (founded in 1879) and the Bilbao Velocipedista Club (founded in 1885).
In 1898, Astorquia, together with six fellow Basque football enthusiasts and Lamiako regulars who also belonged to the Gimnásio Zamacois, decided to open a football practice center in Lamiako. The club's main sources of recruitment soon became the Gimnásio Zamacois, the largest sports center in Bilbao at that time, and the Velocipedista Club, where Astorquia maintained contacts due to his militancy as a member. Once they had a sufficient number of volunteers, he began to organize football matches against the British workers, which were contested on Sundays in Lamiako. Unlike Bilbao FC, this group of football pioneers was almost entirely made up of players from Biscay, including some newcomers who had come over from cycling.
Although it was founded in 1898, it was not until February 1901, in a meeting held at the Café García, that Astorquia's group, now larger, began conversations to become an official football club. To achieve this result, a commission made up of Astorquia, Goiri, and José María Barquín was formed to prepare regulations for a football society, which were approved on 11 June. The entity's board was subsequently elected, with Astorquia being appointed the team's captain, while Alfred Mills, the only foreigner to be part of the board, was named the vice-captain. Since the figure of coach as we know it today did not exist at the time, it was Astorquia and Mills, as captains of the clubs, who were in charge of making up the line-ups and dictating the tactics to be followed.
After obtaining the permission of the Civil Government, the club was officially established on 5 September 1901, in the meeting held at Café García, in which a group of 33 football pioneers, including Astorquia and his brother, Luis, signed the documents to make it official, and hence Athletic Club was born.
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