The Málaga we know today was founded on 25 May 1948 under the name Club Atlético Malagueño. On 25 May 2027 it turns 79. Football in the city, however, is much older, and the club itself is a "child" that kept the family alive.

From nursery to heir

Atlético Malagueño was born as the reserve team of CD Málaga, with the job of feeding players to the first team. Almost a hundred footballers made the jump. In 1959 the two clubs separated administratively.

In July 1992 CD Málaga was dissolved because of financial problems. Atlético Malagueño, however, had its own registration and survived. After a members' referendum, in 1994 it took the name Málaga Club de Fútbol and carried on the city's tradition.

Roots back to 1904

Football reached Málaga from Britain. The first club, Málaga Football Club, played its first recorded match on 3 April 1904 against the crew of the British liner Xarifa, and won 8-4.

It was followed by Real Málaga, Málaga Sport Club and, in 1933, Deportivo Malacitano, which became CD Málaga in 1941. That same year La Rosaleda opened, the stadium that was renovated for the 1982 World Cup and is still the club's home.

Blue and white stripes

The classic shirt has vertical blue and white stripes, with blue shorts and socks. That is where the nicknames "Blanquiazules" and "Albicelestes" come from. Sources do not explain, however, how the stripes were chosen.

The shirt has been through hard times too: after the Spanish Civil War, because of a shortage of fabric, the team wore a white shirt with black shorts. The second kit often takes the purple and green of the city flag, while the 2003 crest shows the Gibralfaro castle and the harbour.

The best-loved nickname is "Boquerones", the anchovies, the little fish that is a symbol of Málaga's cuisine. An anchovy decorated the 2009-10 shirt and was so popular that it returned as a detail inside the collar of the 2025-26 shirt.

Europe and the Dortmund night

In 2002 Málaga won the Intertoto Cup, the first official European title for an Andalusian club. The following season it reached the UEFA Cup quarter-finals, where it went out on penalties to Boavista.

In 2010 Sheikh Abdullah Al Thani took control. With Santi Cazorla in midfield, the team finished fourth in 2012, the best position in its history.

In 2012-13, with Manuel Pellegrini on the bench and Isco and Joaquín on the pitch, it made its Champions League debut and went all the way to the quarter-finals. There it was knocked out by Dortmund 3-2 on aggregate, after a dramatic finish to the second leg.

Fall and comeback

Hard years followed, with relegation to the third tier in 2023, for the first time since 1998. Málaga returned to the second tier within a year, through the play-offs.

On 20 June 2026, with a win away to Almería in the play-off final, the team returned to La Liga after eight years. So its 79th birthday will find it back in the top flight.

Celebrate with us

From nursery club to European contender and back to La Liga, Málaga has never stopped fighting. Happy 79th birthday to the Boquerones!

See our collectible jerseys at sportarena.gr.

Photo: Málaga's La Rosaleda at dusk – Alan Grant, Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY 4.0.