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Iban Zubiaurre
Personal information
Full name	Iban Zubiaurre Urrutia
Date of birth	22 January 1983 (age 41)
Place of birth	Mendaro, Spain
Height	1.76 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position(s)	Right-back
Youth career
	Real Sociedad
Senior career*
Years	Team
2000–2005	Real Sociedad B
2004–2005	Real Sociedad
2006–2013	Athletic Bilbao
2008–2009	→ Elche (loan)
2010–2011	→ Albacete (loan)
2012–2013	→ Salamanca (loan)
2013	Racing Santander
Total
International career
1999–2000	Spain U16
2001	Spain U17
2001	Spain U18
2002	Spain U19
2005	Spain U21
	*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Iban Zubiaurre Urrutia (born 22 January 1983) is a Spanish former footballer who played as a right-back.

Club career

Zubiaurre was born in Mendaro, Gipuzkoa. After making his Real Sociedad first-team debut during the 2004–05 season, he achieved notoriety as a result of a lawsuit in which his first club prevented him from playing for Athletic Bilbao for 14 months, due to an alleged contractual dispute in his transfer between the two Basque sides.^[1]

Zubiaurre, who represented Real Sociedad at the youth level, was introduced as a new Athletic Bilbao player in 2005 by the latter's president Fernando Lamikiz, though he remained under contract.^[2] He was without the legal ability to terminate his contract, which had a year left to run and a buy-out clause of €33 million (the former club had activated a one-season optional extension to his contract, while the latter asserted that he was a free agent).^[3] Real insisted that Athletic pay the entire amount, with the player not being allowed to play professional football during the subsequent legal battle; SCD Durango, a regional club, requested to field him but were denied permission.^[4]

Fifteen months after the lawsuit began, a judge ruled that Athletic had to pay Real Sociedad €5 million,^[5] and were granted permission to field Zubiaurre for the 2006–07 campaign. He was presented a second time at San Mamés Stadium on 16 November 2006 and was given the number 12 shirt.^[6]

On 11 February 2007, Zubiaurre played his first La Liga match for Athletic, appearing against Atlético Madrid as a substitute in a 1–0 away defeat.^[7] That was his only game of the season, in which his team avoided relegation on the last matchday.

Zubiaurre also only featured once in 2007–08, in a 2–0 loss at Getafe CF on 31 October 2007.^[8] After almost two years on the sidelines, he left in order to gain more playing time, joining Segunda División side Elche CF on a season-long loan.^[9]

Returning to Athletic for the 2009–10 campaign, Zubiaurre's season input consisted of 15 minutes against FK Austria Wien (3–0 win at home) in the UEFA Europa League group stage.^[10] In July 2010, another loan ensued, also in the second tier, as he signed with Albacete Balompié.^[11]

Zubiaurre was not included in the squad for the 2011–12 season by new manager Marcelo Bielsa, alongside teammates Koikili and Aitor Ocio. He remained with the team, however.^[12]

Zubiaurre was loaned to UD Salamanca in the Segunda División B for the 2012–13 season. He moved to Racing de Santander in August 2013, being waived after only one month and no matches played.^[13]

Honours

Spain U19

UEFA European Under-19 Championship: 2002^[14]

References

^ "Athletic Club-Real Sociedad: jugadores en los dos bandos" [Athletic Club-Real Sociedad: players on both sides]. Diario AS (in Spanish). 9 May 2014. Archived from the original on 28 August 2017. Retrieved 13 July 2017.
^ "Zubiaurre gets Athletic chance". UEFA. 1 July 2005. Retrieved 6 September 2018.
^ Calvo, R.; Sánchez, R. (2 July 2005). "El Athletic presentó ayer a Zubiaurre y la Real estalla" [Athletic presented Zubiaurre yesterday and Real explode]. Diario AS (in Spanish). Retrieved 19 June 2018.
^ Herrán, Alfonso (6 August 2013). "Iban Zubiaurre pone fin a su calvario de nueve años" [Iban Zubiaurre ends his nine-year ordeal]. Diario AS (in Spanish). Retrieved 6 September 2018.
^ "El Athletic tendrá que pagar cinco millones a la Real por Zubiaurre" [Athletic to pay Real Sociedad €5 million for Zubiaurre]. El Mundo (in Spanish). 4 June 2008. Retrieved 14 September 2008.
^ "Zubiaurre earns Athletic all-clear". UEFA. 14 November 2006. Retrieved 6 September 2018.
^ "Atlético Madrid 1–0 Athletic Bilbao". ESPN Soccernet. 11 February 2007. Archived from the original on 6 September 2018. Retrieved 31 July 2012.
^ "Getafe 2–0 Athletic Bilbao". ESPN Soccernet. 31 October 2007. Archived from the original on 6 September 2018. Retrieved 31 July 2012.
^ "Zubiaurre: "Es una alegría enorme jugar en el Elche"" [Zubiaurre: "I am thrilled to play in Elche"] (in Spanish). Elche CF. 12 August 2008. Archived from the original on 3 October 2011. Retrieved 14 September 2008.
^ "Irrepressible Athletic show their class". UEFA. 17 September 2009. Retrieved 10 April 2016.
^ García, Alberto (30 May 2011). "La cesión de Zubiaurre al Albacete solo se traduce en diez partidos" [Zubiaurre loan to Albacete equals only ten matches]. Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Retrieved 6 September 2018.
^ San Cristóbal, Ainara (14 July 2011). "Koi, entre los ocho leones descartados por el argentino" [Koi, amongst the eight lions deemed surplus to requirements by the Argentine]. Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Retrieved 9 November 2011.
^ "Zubiaurre, un jugador maldito" [Zubiurre, a damned footballer]. ABC (in Spanish). 6 September 2013. Retrieved 13 October 2013.
^ "España vence a Alemania y se proclama campeona de Europa Sub-19" [Spain beat Germany and are crowned Under-19 European champions]. Diario AS (in Spanish). 28 July 2002. Retrieved 6 September 2018.