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Las Palmas
UD Las Palmas logo.svg
Full name Unión Deportiva Las Palmas, S.A.D.
Nickname(s) Canarias
Los Amarillos
La Unión Deportiva
Pío Pío
Founded 22 August 1949; 75 years ago (1949-08-22)
Ground Estadio Gran Canaria
Ground Capacity 32,400
President Miguel Ángel Ramírez Alonso
Manager Luis García
League La Liga
2022–23 Segunda División, 2nd of 22 (promoted)

Unión Deportiva Las Palmas (often called UD Las Palmas) is a football club from Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, a city in the Canary Islands, Spain. The club plays in the Segunda División, which is the second-highest football league in Spain. They were recently in La Liga, the top league.

People often call the team Los Amarillos (The Yellows) because of their bright yellow jerseys. The club started on August 22, 1949. It was formed when five smaller football clubs in the Canary Islands joined together. Las Palmas first played their home games at the Estadio Insular. Since 2003, they have played at the Estadio Gran Canaria.

Las Palmas has won the Segunda División four times. They won in 1953–54, 1963–64, 1984–85, and 1999–2000. They also won the Segunda División B (a lower league) twice. The club finished second in La Liga once, in 1968–69. They were also runners-up in the Copa del Rey (a major cup competition) in 1977–78.

Las Palmas is special because it is the only Spanish football team to get promoted to La Liga two seasons in a row right after it was founded. They stayed in the top league for 19 years, until 1982–83. Since then, they have been promoted to La Liga four more times, most recently in 2022–23.

The team's main colors are yellow and blue. They have a big rivalry with CD Tenerife, a team from a nearby island. This match is called the Canary Islands derby. Both clubs are quite far from mainland Spain, so their away games are often long trips.

Club History

How the Club Started

After the Spanish Civil War, football clubs in Las Palmas faced many problems. The five biggest clubs in the area were Real Club Victoria, Marino FC, CD Gran Canaria, Atlético Club, and Arenas Club. They were losing money quickly. It was hard for them to keep their best players because bigger clubs on the Spanish mainland could offer more money.

A new rule from the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) made things even harder. It said players could only sign contracts for a maximum of two years. This meant local clubs couldn't keep their young, talented players for long. Many players moved to the mainland to play in national competitions.

Eufemiano Fuentes Díaz, who was the president of Marino CF, tried to change these rules. He went to a meeting in Madrid to ask for longer contracts. He also suggested that clubs on the mainland should not be allowed to sign young players from the Canary Islands. But the RFEF did not agree to these ideas.

Clubs in Las Palmas kept losing money and were close to shutting down. Manuel Rodríguez Monroy, a leader in the local football federation, suggested a big idea. He proposed that the five main teams should merge (join together). This would create one strong club that could compete in national competitions and solve their money problems. This new club would also allow players from the Canary Islands to play at a high level without moving away.

The presidents of the five clubs met on February 28, 1949. Gran Canaria, Atlético, and Arenas quickly agreed because they needed financial help. Marino and Victoria were more careful, worrying about how it would affect their clubs and fans. They decided to meet every Monday to work together on the merger.

On April 4, 1949, they asked the RFEF if the new merged club could join the Segunda División (Second Division). The RFEF first said no. But then, a secretary named Ricardo Cabot helped their case. On June 6, 1949, the RFEF announced that football from the Canary Islands was accepted into the third division. This allowed Arenas Club and CD Gran Canaria to merge first, forming Unión Deportiva Las Palmas. This was the first step towards all five clubs joining.

On August 16, 1949, the group had their last meeting. Marino and Victoria still had financial difficulties and were not ready to fully merge. This meant they would not help pay for the Las Palmas Stadium for the new UD Las Palmas to play in.

So, on August 22, 1949, a special meeting was held. All five clubs finally agreed to the plan. That evening, at 8 p.m., Unión Deportiva Las Palmas was officially created! José del Río Amor became the club's first president. Manuel Rodríguez Monroy was the first vice president. The club's first office was in Plazoleta Luis Antunez.

Las Palmas had its first training session on September 16, 1949, with new manager Pancho Arencibia. Juan Santana Macías was the first player signed. On October 9, 1949, Las Palmas played their first match against Marino. Antoñito Jorge scored the club's first goal in a 2–1 win. Antoñito scored 11 goals that season, helping the team get promoted to the Second Division.

Early Years (1949–1963)

In their first season, Las Palmas finished second in their group. This group included teams like CD Tenerife and SD Ceuta. This great start earned them promotion to the Second Division. They played their first derby against Tenerife on April 30, 1950, winning 2–1. Their first away game outside the islands was on May 21, 1950, against Toledo, which they won 5–2.

On June 25, 1950, Las Palmas lost their last league match. This made their promotion uncertain. But luckily, the third-place team also lost, so Las Palmas was officially promoted to the Second Division!

Sadly, one of their first players, Antonio Vieira, passed away from illness on April 4, 1951. His funeral was held in the Church of San Pablo. A tribute match was played, which Las Palmas won 3–1.

In the 1950–51 season, Las Palmas achieved another amazing promotion. They won 4–1 against Málaga on July 8, 1951, which put them in first place. This meant they were promoted to the First Division! Las Palmas became the first club in Spanish football history to get promoted twice in a row, even though the club was only two years old. At the end of that season, their first goalkeeper, Manolo Montes, was sold to Atletico Madrid for 375,000 Spanish pesetas. Montes, nicknamed "El Patrón," played 55 games for Las Palmas and was the first player the club ever sold.

In the next season, Las Palmas was relegated back to the Second Division. They finished 15th with 9 wins, 4 draws, and 17 losses. Their first game of the season was a 4–1 loss to Real Madrid at the new Insular Stadium on September 9, 1951. Juan Cedrés scored Las Palmas' first goal in the First Division. After losing more games, the club decided to sign more experienced players. Manolo Torres and Beneyto joined from Málaga.

The first foreign player for Las Palmas was Jean Luciano, who joined from Real Madrid. He played his first game on December 16, 1951. In January 1952, goalkeeper José “Pepín” Casas Gris was signed. He was the first player from mainland Spain to play for Las Palmas.

On March 26, 1952, Las Palmas played against Millonarios de Bogotá, a famous team from Colombia. Millonarios had been undefeated against many top European teams. But Las Palmas won 3–2! Alfredo Di Stéfano scored his first goal in Spain during this match. Las Palmas was the only European team to beat Millonarios on that tour.

In the 1952–53 season, manager Luis Valle Benítez left the club. Las Palmas stayed in the Second Division until the 1953–54 season. That year, they were promoted back to the First Division. They won their first title under manager Satur Grech, finishing first in the league. On December 27, 1953, Las Palmas played their first derby against Tenerife in a national competition. They drew both matches against Tenerife. A goalless draw on April 25, 1954, secured Las Palmas' promotion.

Las Palmas managed to stay in the First Division for the first time during the 1954–55 season, finishing 12th. They won their first game against Barcelona 2–1 on February 9, 1955. They secured their spot in the league by beating Celta 3–1 at home.

In the 1955–56 season, Las Palmas started strong, reaching 3rd place. But they struggled later in the season. Key players like captain Juan Beltrán got injured. Beltrán was a respected captain, nicknamed "El del pañuelo en la frente" (The one with the handkerchief on his forehead). He was the first player from the club's reserve team to play for the main team. He was also the first Las Palmas player to play for the Spanish national team.

In the 1956–57 season, Las Palmas reached 100 points in their First Division history. Two talented players from the Canary Islands, Alfonso Silva and Rafael Mújica, returned to play for Las Palmas.

The 1957–58 season saw Luis Molowny become a player-coach. Before he took over, the team had some very big losses, including 7–0 to Barcelona and 9–0 to Atletico Madrid. Molowny, who returned from Real Madrid, scored 3 goals in 3 games. Under his leadership, Las Palmas beat Atletico Madrid 3–0 on February 9, 1958. They avoided relegation by beating Real Valladolid 3–1. The club started signing more foreign players, like José Parodi from Paraguay.

Las Palmas avoided relegation again in the 1958–59 season by winning a playoff against Levante. However, the club was facing serious financial problems. In the 1959–60 season, after six seasons in the First Division, Las Palmas was finally relegated. They finished with only 13 points and conceded 77 goals. This was their worst season at the time. The club's relegation was due to relying too much on foreign players and growing money problems.

Top-Flight Success

Las Palmas returned to La Liga at the end of the 1963–64 season, winning the Second Division title again. This started their most successful period in the top league. Under manager Vicente Dauder, they finished third in 1967–68. Four Las Palmas players were even chosen for the Spanish national team that won the UEFA Euro 1964 tournament.

The next season was even better. The team finished second in the league, just behind Real Madrid. This meant they qualified for a European competition for the first time! They played in the 1969–70 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup but were knocked out in the first round.

Sadly, Las Palmas player Juan Guedes passed away suddenly on March 9, 1971, at age 28. The next season, French coach Pierre Sinibaldi led the club to fifth place. This qualified them for the UEFA Cup. They beat Torino F.C. and ŠK Slovan Bratislava but lost to Dutch club FC Twente. At the end of the 1974–75 season, another player, Tonono, who played with Guedes, died from a liver infection.

Las Palmas played in European competition for the third time in the 1977–78 UEFA Cup. They won against FK Sloboda Tuzla but then lost to Ipswich Town from England. In the same year, under manager Miguel Muñoz, and with talented players like Miguel Ángel Brindisi and Daniel Carnevali from Argentina, the club also reached their first Copa del Rey final. They lost 1–3 to Barcelona on April 19, 1978, at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium.

From the 1990s onwards, Las Palmas mostly played in the Segunda División. They also spent six years in Segunda División B, which is the third level of Spanish football. From 2000 to 2002, they were back in the top league. On October 3, 2001, the team won 4–2 at home against Real Madrid. Young player Rubén Castro scored two goals in that game. However, the season still ended in relegation. On December 22, 2001, Las Palmas played its 1,000th game in La Liga.

In the 2009–10 season in Segunda División, the club finished 17th, just barely avoiding relegation. On June 21, 2015, Las Palmas was promoted back to La Liga after beating Real Zaragoza.

On May 27, 2023, Las Palmas earned promotion to the first division again. They finished second in the league on the very last day of the season. This meant they returned to the top league after five years in the second tier.

Training Facilities: Ciudad Deportiva

The Ciudad Deportiva UD Las Palmas, also known as Barranco Seco, is where UD Las Palmas trains. It covers a large area of 70,000 square meters. The complex is located in the Barranco Seco area, just outside the city of Las Palmas.

Building the Training Ground

UD Las Palmas bought the land in Barranco Seco in the 1960s. This was thanks to the club director at the time, Manuel Betancor. In the 1970s, there was only one training pitch used by the club's reserve and junior teams. In 1982, this area was improved so the first team could use it for training.

In June 2015, the plan for the Ciudad Deportiva (Sports City) began. However, construction didn't start until 2017. After about two years of building, the complex officially opened on July 8, 2019. The architect, Juan Palop-Casado, designed it to be as sustainable as possible. The construction involved many workers and a lot of materials, like sand, steel, and concrete.

This was only the first part of the entire sports city project. The club spent 22.5 million euros of its own money on these facilities. The second part of the project will include a building with many different services. Once finished, the entire complex will be 70,000 square meters.

What's Inside

The new training complex has modern changing rooms, a meeting hall, and a gym with physiotherapy equipment. It also has a dining room and a press room. There are two parking areas for 130 vehicles.

The Ciudad Deportiva has three full-size training pitches:

  • Ernesto Aparicio training field, with natural grass.
  • David García Santana training field, with natural grass.
  • Manuel Betancor training field, with artificial turf. This pitch is used by the club's reserve teams, Las Palmas Atlético and UD Las Palmas C.

Team Performance Over the Years

CarlosMorete
Carlos Morete was the second-highest scorer for the club after Germán Dévora.
Estadio Gran Canaria
A view of the Estadio Gran Canaria, Las Palmas' home stadium.
Season Tier Division Place Copa del Rey
1949–50 4 1ª Reg. 1st DNP
1950–51 2 2ª 3rd DNP
1951–52 1 1ª 15th DNP
1952–53 2 2ª 4th Third round
1953–54 2 2ª 1st Round of 16
1954–55 1 1ª 12th Round of 16
1955–56 1 1ª 11th Round of 16
1956–57 1 1ª 10th Round of 16
1957–58 1 1ª 11th Quarter-finals
1958–59 1 1ª 14th Round of 32
1959–60 1 1ª 16th Round of 32
1960–61 2 2ª 5th Round of 16
1961–62 2 2ª 4th First round
1962–63 2 2ª 3rd Round of 16
1963–64 2 2ª 1st First round
1964–65 1 1ª 9th Round of 16
1965–66 1 1ª 10th Round of 16
1966–67 1 1ª 11th Round of 16
1967–68 1 1ª 3rd Round of 16
1968–69 1 1ª 2nd Round of 16
Season Tier Division Place Copa del Rey
1969–70 1 1ª 9th Round of 16
1970–71 1 1ª 14th Round of 16
1971–72 1 1ª 5th Round of 16
1972–73 1 1ª 11th Fifth round
1973–74 1 1ª 11th Semi-finals
1974–75 1 1ª 13th Quarter-finals
1975–76 1 1ª 13th Quarter-finals
1976–77 1 1ª 4th Round of 16
1977–78 1 1ª 7th Runners-up
1978–79 1 1ª 6th Fourth round
1979–80 1 1ª 12th Third round
1980–81 1 1ª 15th First round
1981–82 1 1ª 15th Round of 16
1982–83 1 1ª 16th Third round
1983–84 2 2ª 11th Semi-finals
1984–85 2 2ª 1st Fourth round
1985–86 1 1ª 13th Fourth round
1986–87 1 1ª 14th Fourth round
1987–88 1 1ª 20th Round of 16
1988–89 2 2ª 11th Round of 32
Season Tier Division Place Copa del Rey
1989–90 2 2ª 6th First round
1990–91 2 2ª 15th Round of 16
1991–92 2 2ª 20th Fourth round
1992–93 3 2ª B 1st Fourth round
1993–94 3 2ª B 2nd Third round
1994–95 3 2ª B 3rd Fourth round
1995–96 3 2ª B 1st Second round
1996–97 2 2ª 7th Semi-finals
1997–98 2 2ª 3rd Third round
1998–99 2 2ª 6th Fourth round
1999–2000 2 2ª 1st Second round
2000–01 1 1ª 11th Round of 32
2001–02 1 1ª 18th Round of 32
2002–03 2 2ª 5th Round of 64
2003–04 2 2ª 20th Round of 64
2004–05 3 2ª B 7th Round of 64
2005–06 3 2ª B 3rd Third round
2006–07 2 2ª 18th Third round
2007–08 2 2ª 8th Round of 32
2008–09 2 2ª 18th Second round
Season Tier Division Place Copa del Rey
2009–10 2 2ª 17th Third round
2010–11 2 2ª 15th Second round
2011–12 2 2ª 9th Second round
2012–13 2 2ª 6th Round of 16
2013–14 2 2ª 6th Round of 32
2014–15 2 2ª 4th Round of 32
2015–16 1 1ª 11th Quarter-finals
2016–17 1 1ª 14th Round of 16
2017–18 1 1ª 19th Round of 16
2018–19 2 2ª 12th Second round
2019–20 2 2ª 9th Second round
2020–21 2 2ª 9th Second round
2021–22 2 2ª 4th Second round
2022–23 2 2ª 2nd Second round
2023–24 1 1ª 16th Round of 32
2024–25 1 1ª 19th Round of 32
2025–26 2 2ª TBD

Recent Seasons in Detail

Season Pos. Pld W D L GF GA Pos. Cup Notesint
1999–2000 2D 1 42 20 12 10 60 41 72 Promoted
2000–01 1D 11 38 13 7 18 42 62 46
2001–02 1D 18 38 9 13 16 40 50 40 Relegated
2002–03 2D 5 42 16 16 10 53 43 64
2003–04 2D 20 42 10 14 18 46 68 44 Relegated
2004–05 2DB 7 38 17 9 12 50 33 60
2005–06 2DB 3 38 18 13 7 45 24 67 Promoted
2006–07 2D 18 42 13 12 17 51 59 51
2007–08 2D 8 42 15 12 15 51 55 57
2008–09 2D 18 42 10 17 15 46 51 47
2009–10 2D 17 42 12 15 15 49 49 51
2010–11 2D 15 42 13 15 14 56 71 54
2011–12 2D 9 42 16 10 16 58 59 58
2012–13 2D 6 42 18 12 12 62 55 66
2013–14 2D 6 42 18 9 15 51 50 63
2014–15 2D 4 42 22 12 8 73 47 78 Promoted
2015–16 1D 11 38 12 8 18 45 53 44
2016–17 1D 14 38 10 9 19 53 74 39
2017–18 1D 19 38 5 7 26 24 74 22 Relegated
2018–19 2D 12 42 12 18 12 48 50 54
2019–20 2D 9 42 14 15 13 49 46 57
2020–21 2D 9 42 14 14 14 46 53 56
2021–22 2D 4 42 19 13 10 57 47 70
2022–23 2D 2 42 18 18 6 49 29 72 Promoted
2023–24 1D 16 38 10 10 18 33 47 40
2024–25 1D 19 38 8 8 22 40 61 32 Relegated

Club Honours

  • La Liga
    Runners-up (1): 1968–69

Former Players

Pedri is one famous former player.

See also: Category:UD Las Palmas players

Club Coaches

See also: Category:UD Las Palmas managers

Since it was founded, Unión Deportiva Las Palmas has had 61 different head coaches. Some coaches have led the team more than once. Pierre Sinibaldi has coached the most matches, with 166 games over four full seasons. Other coaches who led many matches include Roque Olsen (135 games) and Luis Molowny (130 games).

The team has earned 9 promotions (moving up to a higher league). Seven of these promotions were to the top division, Primera. Two promotions were to the Segunda (Second Division). The first promotion was achieved by Arsenio Arocha. Most of the coaches have been Spanish, but 9 other nationalities have also coached the team.

  • Spain Satur Grech (1953–57)
  • Spain Luis Molowny (1957–58)
  • Spain Baltasar Albéniz (1958–59)
  • Spain Luis Molowny (1959)
  • France Marcel Domingo (1959–60)
  • Spain Paco Campos (1961–62)
  • Spain Rosendo Hernández (1962–63)
  • Spain Vicente Dauder (1963–66)
  • Spain Luis Molowny (1968–70)
  • Spain Rosendo Hernández (1970)
  • Spain Héctor Rial (1970–71)
  • France Pierre Sinibaldi (1971–75)
  • Paraguay Heriberto Herrera (1975–76)
  • Argentina Roque Olsen (1976–77)
  • Spain Miguel Muñoz (1977–79)
  • Spain Antonio Ruiz (1979–80)
  • Paraguay Heriberto Herrera (1982)
  • Austria Walter Skocik (1982–83)
  • Uruguay Héctor Núñez (1983–84)
  • Argentina Roque Olsen (1984–85)
  • Hungary Ferenc Kovács (1986–87)
  • Argentina Roque Olsen (1988)
  • Spain Paquito (1989–90)
  • Spain Manolo Cardo (1990–91)
  • Argentina Roque Olsen (1991), (1991–92)
  • Argentina Miguel Ángel Brindisi (1991–92)
  • Spain Iñaki Sáez (1993–94)
  • Spain Paco Castellano (1994–95)
  • Spain Iñaki Sáez (1995)
  • Argentina Ángel Cappa (1996–97)
  • Spain Paco Castellano (1997)
  • Spain Mariano García Remón (1997–98)
  • Spain Paco Castellano (1998–99)
  • Croatia Sergije Krešić (1999–01)
  • Spain Fernando Vázquez (2001–02)
  • Spain Josu Uribe (2002–03)
  • Spain Juan Manuel Rodríguez (2003)
  • Spain David Vidal (2003–04)
  • Spain David Amaral (2004)
  • Spain Carlos Sánchez Aguiar (2004–05)
  • Serbia Josip Višnjić (2005–06)
  • Spain Carlos Sánchez Aguiar (2006)
  • Spain Juanito (2006–07)
  • Spain Juan Manuel Rodríguez (2007–08)
  • Spain Javier Vidales (2008–09)
  • Spain Paco Castellano (2009)
  • Croatia Sergije Krešić (2009–10)
  • Spain Paco Jémez (2010–11)
  • Spain Juan Manuel Rodríguez (2011–12)
  • Spain Sergio Lobera (2012–14)
  • Spain Josico (2014)
  • Spain Paco Herrera (2014–15)
  • Spain Quique Setién (2015–17)
  • Spain Manolo Márquez (2017)
  • Spain Pako Ayestarán (2017)
  • Spain Paco Jémez (2017–18)
  • Spain Manolo Jiménez (2018)
  • Spain Paco Herrera (2018–19)
  • Spain Pepe Mel (2019–22)
  • Spain García Pimienta (2022–2024)
  • Spain Luis Carrión (2024)
  • Spain Diego Martínez (2024–)

Affiliated Teams

Las Palmas has had other teams connected to the main club since 1954. Their official B-team, Las Palmas Atlético, was started in 1976. A third team was formed in 2006. This team reached the highest regional football division before it was stopped in 2010 and then started again the next season.

The club also had a women's football team. This team played in the top division between 2009 and 2011. In 2010, Las Palmas also created an indoor football team. They played matches at the Centro Insular de Deportes.

Club Badge

The Las Palmas badge is a blue shield with yellow decorations at the top. The club's name, city, and island group are written on these yellow parts. In the middle of the badge is the city's coat of arms. Below that, you can see the five badges of the original clubs that joined together in 1949: Victoria, Arenas, Deportivo, Marino, and Atlético. A small white banner above them says the city's motto: Segura tiene la palma.

In Spanish football, many clubs have a special connection to the royal family. This allows them to use "Real" in their name and a picture of the Spanish crown on their badge. Las Palmas does not have this direct royal connection. However, they still have the Spanish crown on their badge because Real Club Victoria, one of the original merging clubs, had this special royal connection.

The club's flag is yellow on top and blue underneath, with the badge in the center. The flag of the island of Gran Canaria also uses these colors, but in a diagonal pattern.

Images for kids

  • GAE - NEC - 53493777654 (Jasper Cillessen)

    Jasper Cillessen joined UD Las Palmas in 2024

  • McBurnie and PSG superstar (cropped)

    Oli McBurnie also joined UD Las Palmas in 2024

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Unión Deportiva Las Palmas para niños

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