Real Oviedo

Real Oviedo are Asturias' most beloved football club, a north Spanish institution from the city of Oviedo whose blue shirts have been a fixture in Spanish football for nearly a century. Founded in 1926, the club had their golden era in the 1990s and early 2000s when they were a genuine La Liga presence and even reached the UEFA Cup. Their remarkable 2012 crowdfunding campaign, when fans from around the world bought shares to save the club from extinction, became one of football's most moving stories of supporter loyalty and global solidarity, and brought Real Oviedo back from the brink. Founded in 1926, Real Oviedo are based in Oviedo, Asturias, Spain, and compete in the Segunda Division, Spain's second tier. They play at Estadio Carlos Tartiere. The club are nicknamed Los Carbayones. Major honours include promotion to La Liga on multiple occasions. Their home colours are blue and white. The club nearly went bankrupt in 2012 but was saved through an international crowdfunding campaign. The blue home shirt of Real Oviedo is the colour of Asturian football pride, a rich blue that has been worn through La Liga seasons, relegations, and one of football's most extraordinary rescues. The kits from the late 1990s and early 2000s La Liga era are the most storied, worn as Oviedo competed against Real Madrid and Barcelona and made their mark in UEFA Cup competition. The shirts from the 2012 to 2013 period, worn during the club's remarkable crowdfunding-driven rebirth, carry a different kind of emotional weight. Regardless of manufacturer, that blue shirt remains a symbol of an Asturian club that refused to die.