Editing Andalusia (section)

==Sports==
===Team sports===
[[File:Estado de la Rosaleda (Málaga C.F.).jpg|thumb|[[La Rosaleda]] is the stadium of [[Málaga CF]], one of four Andalusian clubs in [[Segunda División]].]]
In Andalusia, as throughout Spain, [[Association football|football]] is the predominant sport. Introduced to Spain by [[United Kingdom|British]] men who worked in mining for [[Rio Tinto Group|Rio Tinto]] in the province of Huelva, the sport soon became popular with the local population. As Spain's oldest existing football club, [[Recreativo de Huelva]], founded 1889, is known as ''El Decano'' ("the Dean").<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.lfp.es/competiciones/2007-08/primera/equipo.asp?equ=rhu |title=Año fundación del Recreativo de Huelva |access-date=7 October 2008 |publisher=Liga de Fútbol Profesional (España) |language=es |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080418072641/http://www.lfp.es/competiciones/2007-08/primera/equipo.asp?equ=rhu |archive-date=18 April 2008 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

For the 2024–2025 season, two Andalusian clubs compete in Spain's First Division ''[[La Liga]]'': [[Real Betis]] and [[Sevilla FC]]. Betis won La Liga in [[1934–35 La Liga|1934–35]] and Sevilla in the 1945–46 season.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.lfp.es/historico/primera/clasificaciones/palmares.asp |title=Palmarés |publisher=Liga de Fútbol Profesional |language=es |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080730224245/http://www.lfp.es/historico/primera/clasificaciones/palmares.asp |archive-date=30 July 2008}}</ref><ref>[http://www.uefa.com/competitions/supercup/history/season=2006/intro.html 2006: Sevilla win big in Monaco] {{webarchive| url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100108100401/http://www.uefa.com/competitions/supercup/history/season%3D2006/intro.html |date=8 January 2010 }}, 25 August 2006, UEFA.com. Retrieved 17 December 2009.</ref> There are five Andalusian clubs playing in the [[Segunda División|second division]]: [[Málaga CF]], [[Cádiz CF]], [[Córdoba CF|Cordoba CF]], [[UD Almería|UD Almeria]], and [[Granada CF]].

The [[Andalusia autonomous football team]] is not in any league, and plays only [[exhibition game|friendly matches]]. In recent years, they have played mostly during the Christmas break of the football leagues. They play mostly against national teams from other countries, but would not be eligible for international league play, where Spain is represented by a single national team.

In recent decades, [[basketball]] has become increasingly popular, with [[CB Málaga]], also known as '''Unicaja Málaga''' who have won the [[Liga ACB]] in 2007 and the [[Korać Cup]] in 2001 and usually play the [[Euroleague]], [[CB Sevilla]] (Banca Cívica) and [[CB Granada]] competing at the top level in the [[Liga ACB]].<ref>For a detailed history of basketball in Andalucia, see: {{cite book |last=Gallardo Rodríguez |first=Miguel |title=75 años de historia del baloncesto andaluz |year=2006 |publisher=Junta de Andalucía. Consejería de Turismo, Comercio y Deporte. Instituto Andaluz del Deporte |isbn=84-689-6145-0 |language=es}}</ref>

Unlike basketball, [[Team handball|handball]] has never really taken off in Andalusia. There is one Andalusian team in the [[Liga ASOBAL|Liga Asobal]], Spain's premier handball league: [[BM Puente Genil]], playing in the [[Province of Córdoba (Spain)|province of Córdoba]].

Andalusia's strongest showing in sports has been in [[table tennis]]. There are two professional teams: [[Cajasur Priego TM]] and [[Caja Granada TM]], the latter being Spain's leading table tennis team, with more than 20 league championships in nearly consecutive years and 14 consecutive Copas del Rey, dominating the [[Liga ENEBÉ]]. Cajasur is also one of the league's leading teams.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20081025075204/http://www.fttcv.org/webnueva/liga0708_eligamenu.asp?idm=2&idsm=0&IDNIVEL=11&IDGRUPO=%DANICO LIGAS NACIONALES / Liga "Arteal Ventanas" Superdivisión Masculina, Real Federación Española de Tenis de Mesa]. Retrieved 17 December 2009 cites for the current prominent status of these teams.</ref>{{Citation needed|date=December 2009}} <!-- need citation for the championships -->

===Olympics===
[[File:Panoramio - V&A Dudush - Estadio Olímpico 57 619.jpg|thumb|[[Estadio de La Cartuja]] was constructed as part of [[Seville]]'s bid to host the Summer Olympics]]
220 Andalusian athletes have competed in a total of 16 summer or winter [[Olympic Games]]. The first was [[Leopoldo Sainz de la Maza]], part of the silver medal-winning [[polo]] team at the [[1920 Summer Olympics]] in [[Antwerp]], [[Belgium]].<ref>{{Cite book |title=The Polo Encyclopedia, 2d Ed. |last=Laffaye |first=Horace A. |publisher=McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers |year=2015 |isbn=978-0-7864-9577-1 |location=Jefferson, North Carolina |pages=95}}</ref>

In all, Andalusians have won six gold medals, 11 silver, and two bronze. Winners of multiple medals include the Córdoban [[boxing|boxer]] [[Rafael Lozano (boxer, born 1970)|Rafael Lozano]] (bronze in the [[1996 Summer Olympics]] at [[Atlanta]], [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]], US, and silver in the [[2000 Summer Olympics]] in [[Sydney]], Australia); sailor [[Theresa Zabell]], Malagueña by adoption (gold medals at [[Barcelona]] in [[1992 Summer Olympics|1992]] and Atlanta in 1996). Other notable winners have been Granadan [[tennis]] player [[Manuel Orantes]] (silver in the men's singles of the [[Tennis at the 1968 Summer Olympics|demonstration tournament]] in [[Mexico City]] in [[1968 Summer Olympics|1968]]), Jerezano riders [[Ignacio Rambla]] and [[Rafael Soto]] (silver in [[dressage]] in [[Athens]] in [[2004 Summer Olympics|2004]]) and the [[racewalking|racewalker]] [[Paquillo Fernández]] from [[Guadix]] (silver in [[Athens]] in [[2004 Summer Olympics|2004]]).

The largest number of Olympic appearances were by the Malagueña swimmer [[María Peláez]] (five appearances), the Granadan skier [[María José Rienda]] (four), the Sevillian rider [[Luis Astolfi]] (four), and the Sevillian rower [[Fernando Climent]] (four, including a silver at [[Los Angeles]], [[California]], US, in [[1984 Summer Olympics|1984]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fundacionandaluciaolimpica.org/index_cont.php?xid=35 |title=Andalucía en los Juegos Olímpicos |access-date=8 October 2008 |work=Fundación Andalucía Olímpica |language=es |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080610022321/http://www.fundacionandaluciaolimpica.org/index_cont.php?xid=35 |archive-date=10 June 2008}}</ref>

Seville has been a pre-candidate to host the Summer Olympics in two occasions, 2004 and 2008, and Granada has been a pre-candidate to host the winter Olympics; neither has ever succeeded in its candidature. The ski resort of [[Sierra Nevada Ski Station|Sierra Nevada]], near Granada, has however hosted the [[FIS Alpine World Ski Championships 1996|1996 Alpine World Ski Championships]], and Granada hosted the [[2015 Winter Universiade]].

===Other sports===
Other sporting events in Andalusia include [[surfing]], [[kitesurfing]] and [[windsurfing]] competitions at [[Tarifa]], various [[golf]] tournaments at courses along the coast, and [[horse racing]] and polo at several locations in the interior. Andalusia hosted the [[1999 World Championships in Athletics]] (Seville), the [[2005 Mediterranean Games]] (Almería) and the [[FIS Alpine World Ski Championships 1996]] (Granada), among other major events. There is also the annual [[Vuelta a Andalucía]] bicycle road race and the [[Linares chess tournament]]. The [[Circuito de Jerez]], located near [[Jerez de la Frontera]], hosts the [[Spanish motorcycle Grand Prix]].