Unió Esportiva Figueres is a Spanish football team based in Figueres, in the autonomous community of Catalonia. Founded in 1919 and refounded in 2007 it plays in the Lliga Elit, holding home matches at Estadi Municipal de Vilatenim, with a seating capacity of 9,472.[2]
Figueres was first founded on April 13, 1919.[3] Bernat Palmer was elected as its first president, and Camp de l’Horta de l’Institut became its first stadium.[4] In 1983 the club first reached Segunda División B, and promoted to Segunda División only three years later, maintaining that status for seven seasons and appearing once in the La Liga promotion playoffs after finishing third in the regular season; it eventually lost on aggregate to Cádiz.
In the 2001-02 season, Figueres became the first club from third division to advance to the Copa del Rey semi-finals. Their campaign began with a 10-1 aggregate victory over CD Teruel. In the following round, the round of 64 Figueres was faced with powerhouse Barcelona, beating them in extra time in historic fashion.[5][6] In the round of 32, the club eliminated another first division club, this time beating Osasuna on penalties after a 0–0 draw. In the round of 16, which was now played over two legs, Figueres beat Novelda 2–1 on aggregate. In the quarter-finals, Figueres pulled off another upset, beating Second division club Córdoba 2–0 on aggregate. In the semi-finals, Figueres was faced with Deportivo de La Coruña, one of the best teams in Spain at the time and league champions in 2000. The first leg in Figueres ended in a 1–0 loss, and the second leg ended in a 1–1 draw, with Figueres being eliminated and Deportivo going on to beat Real Madrid in the final.
For most of the 90s and 2000s Figueres was consolidated in the third level, only now and then vying for promotion. On 27 June 2007 the principal shareholder transferred the club to Castelldefels due to little support of the public, and the side would eventually disappear.[7]
In August 2007 UE Figueres was refounded by minority shareholders, with the team starting playing in the lowest division of Spanish football, Quarta Catalana.
