Hippodrome of Lamiako

The Limiako Hippodrome, or the Hippodrome of Lamiako, was a sports venue based in the Lamiako neighborhood of Leioa, Biscay, Basque Country. Originally an equestrian venue, it's now best remembered as a historic football venue. The Campo de Lamiako played a pivotal role in the early steps of football in the Basque Country as one of the first football fields in the city, serving as a practice ground for the city’s first known football matches between the members of the Club Atleta of the Nervión Shipyards. In 1894, the Limiako field hosted a match between young Bilbao enthusiasts and British workers, which is now regarded as one of the first ‘international’ matches in the history of the sport.

History

Early years

Campo de Lamiako was founded on 18 September 1887, on the right bank of the Nervión, next to the electricity factory, towards Las Arenas, and near the train track. The goalposts were kept in the sentry box of one of the guards of the electricity factory. In that same year, the Nervión Shipyards were founded by the Martínez de las Rivas brothers (José María and Francisco) and an English partner named Charles Mark Palmer from Newcastle. The English employees of the Shipyards created a club called Club Atlético, which was dedicated to the practice of several sports, who were mostly held at Lamiako. On 27 August 1892, Lamiako hosted a series of sporting events organized by Atlético's president (Enrique Jones Bird), such as velocipede races, foot races and sack races.

Bilbao was introduced to football in the late 19th century by the British colonies that were based in the industrial zones.