The Pride of Vallekas

It was the 31st of July, 2015, and Elche fans were outside the stadium. The season was long over but not for these fans. They had fireworks in their hand, but with every passing minute it looked like they would be unused. Elche had come 13th but for the first time in their 92-year history - in fact for the first time for any club in La Liga history - had been relegated for non-sporting reasons. The team was relegated for not paying their debts on time. So what were the fans waiting for? Elche had until midnight to pay €4 million, otherwise they would be relegated to the Segunda B - Spain’s amateur, third tier where automatic promotion doesn’t exist, money is scarce and newly-relegated clubs can go out of business. If Elche were to be gone, they would be gone forever. Many players tore their contracts and left the club, in effect waiving the unpaid wages Elche owed them. Some players delayed their payments. Fans were urged to buy season tickets and shirts and sponsors were desp...

Toni Kraken runs an unoffcial Real Jaén English news account. You can follow it here . On that note, c heck out the club website here . Finally, you can follow Toni himself here . How long have you been a fan of Real Jaén and what made you support them in the first place? First off, my name is Toni and I am from the Jaén province in Southern Spain, although currently living in China. I basically grew up watching football, so it's kind of difficult to determine the exact moment when I became a Real Jaén fan, as except for the biggest clubs in Spain, Real Jaén is the club that shows most influence and impact in the area. So let's say I support them because I consider them to be my home club. Given the transfer windows and the squad that was assembled at the start of the season, is Real Jaén where you want it to be? Absolutely not, as we are struggling at the bottom of the table seeking for safety this season. These three last seasons have been equally disappointing and...