 | |
| Organising body | Hispania Athletic Club |
|---|---|
| Founded | 20 January 1901 |
| Abolished | 1903 |
| Region | Catalonia |
| Related competitions | Catalan football championship |
| Last champions | Club Espanyol (1907) |
| Most successful club(s) | Hispania AC FC Barcelona Club Espanyol (1 title) |
The Hispania Athletic Club Tournament–Alfonso Macaya Cup, popularly known as the Copa Macaya, was a football competition contested by clubs from Catalonia which ran from 1900 until 1903, disappearing at the same time of its organizers, Hispania AC, who won the first edition in 1901.[1][2] Initially, the championship was open to all Spanish clubs, thus some historians consider this cup to be the first national championship in Spain,[1] as well as the predecessor and forerunner for the Catalan football championship which began in 1903.[3] Until that point, the teams founded at the end of 1899 and during 1900 had been limited to playing friendly games only. It was one of the first football championships played on the Iberian Peninsula, after Taça D. Carlos I in Portugal (1894) and the Merchants Cup in Gibraltar (1895).
It was named in honor of the donator of the trophy, Alfonso Macaya, ideologue and promoter of the championship.[1][4][5] In 1903, the third and last edition of the Copa Macaya organized by Hispania was held simultaneously with the Copa Barcelona organized by FC Barcelona.[1]
Notable figures of this tournament are Joan Gamper, Arthur Witty, Samuel Morris, Gustavo Green and Udo Steinberg.
- ^ a b c d "La Copa Macaya, el primer campeonato de fútbol de España" [The Copa Macaya, the first soccer championship in Spain]. elfutbolymasalla.com. 25 January 2018. Retrieved 17 November 2022.
- ^ Lee, Chris (19 April 2021). Origin Stories. Pitch Publishing. ISBN 978-1-78531-923-5.
- ^ "Spain - Final Tables Catalonia". RSSSF. 20 May 2020. Retrieved 22 July 2022.
- ^ "Copa Macaya - Museu Olímpic i de l'Esport" [Macaya Cup - Olympic and Sports Museum]. www.museuolimpicbcn.cat (in Catalan). Retrieved 23 July 2022.
- ^ Barcelona: George Girvan scored La Liga club's first goal and taught Spanish how to foul, Neil Paterson, BBC Sport, 28 March 2023