Athletic Bilbao vs Real Sociedad closes LaLiga's eleventh round on Sunday 1 November at San Mamés, and for once the visitors arrive as the team everyone else is chasing. Real Sociedad took Athletic apart over four meetings last season, then went to Seville and lifted the Copa del Rey. Athletic, under a new coach, are still working out how to score goals.
Kick-off is 21:00 in Bilbao, which is 20:00 in the UK and 15:00 Eastern in the US (the clocks will have gone back there that morning).
Athletic Bilbao
Real SociedadWhere the Basque derby started
The first league meeting was on 10 February 1929, the opening day of LaLiga's first season, and it finished 1-1 at Atocha. In the return at San Mamés that April, Athletic came from 0-2 down to win 4-2, which set the tone for the next few decades.
Athletic still lead the league series. LaLiga's own count, from its derby page, is 63 Athletic wins to 54 for Real Sociedad, with 41 draws in 158 league games. Telmo Zarra, Guillermo Gorostiza and José María Satrústegui share the scoring record at 14 goals each, and Mikel Oyarzabal leads the active players with eight.
San Mamés, Bilbao. Photo: Ardfern, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
The meetings Athletic would rather forget
Recent history is less comfortable for Bilbao. The 2021 Copa del Rey final, played behind closed doors in Seville, went to Real Sociedad 1-0 through an Oyarzabal penalty. Last season was worse.
| Date | Competition | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 3 Apr 2021 | Copa del Rey final | Real Sociedad 1-0 Athletic |
| 1 Nov 2025 | LaLiga, Anoeta | Real Sociedad 3-2 Athletic |
| 1 Feb 2026 | LaLiga, San Mamés | Athletic 1-1 Real Sociedad |
| 11 Feb 2026 | Copa semi, first leg | Athletic 0-1 Real Sociedad |
| 4 Mar 2026 | Copa semi, second leg | Real Sociedad 1-0 Athletic |
The league game at Anoeta was settled by a late Gorrotxategi winner. In February, Iñigo Ruiz de Galarreta needed an 88th-minute strike to rescue a point at home after Gonçalo Guedes had scored. Then came the Copa semi-final: Beñat Turrientes won the first leg at San Mamés and Oyarzabal's 87th-minute penalty, given after a VAR review, finished the tie in San Sebastián.
Real Sociedad went on to beat Atlético Madrid on penalties in the final on 18 April, with Unai Marrero saving two kicks in the shootout. So Athletic have gone four derbies without a win, and they watched their neighbours lift a trophy at the end of the run.
Athletic Bilbao vs Real Sociedad: where each side stands
The two clubs come into this in very different moods. Edin Terzić, the former Dortmund coach, replaced Ernesto Valverde in the summer, and his side have two wins, three draws and two defeats from seven league games. Seven goals in seven matches tells you most of what you need to know. They drew 0-0 with Alavés and 0-0 at Valencia either side of a trip to Rayo that was abandoned in the 25th minute after objects were thrown onto the pitch.
There is talent in there. Athletic beat Atlético Madrid 3-0 in September with goals from Nico Williams, Robert Navarro and Oihan Sancet. The problem is availability. Gorka Guruzeta has ruptured a cruciate ligament and is out for the season, while Williams (thigh) and Sancet (calf) have both been missing in October, so their fitness is the team news to watch.
Real Sociedad sit fifth on 16 points under Pellegrino Matarazzo after three straight league wins, the latest a 5-2 romp at Málaga in which Oyarzabal scored twice and Takefusa Kubo opened the scoring in the third minute. They concede plenty, 17 in nine league games, and they shipped four at the Bernabéu and three at home to Atlético, so this is not a watertight team.
| # | Team | P | GD | Pts | Form |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 |  Real Madrid | 9 | 14 | 21 | WWLWW |
| 4 |  Real Betis | 9 | 2 | 19 | LWDWW |
| 5 |  Real Sociedad | 9 | 0 | 16 | WWWLW |
| 6 |  Sevilla | 9 | -2 | 14 | LDLWW |
| 7 |  Deportivo Alavés | 9 | 3 | 11 | LLDLL |
| 8 |  Celta Vigo | 9 | 3 | 11 | WDWDD |
| 9 |  Deportivo de A Coruña | 9 | 1 | 11 | DLDLD |
| 10 |  Osasuna | 9 | -8 | 11 | WLDLL |
| 11 |  Athletic Bilbao | 7 | 1 | 9 | DDDW |
| 12 |  Villarreal | 9 | 0 | 9 | DLWWL |
| 13 |  Rayo Vallecano | 8 | -5 | 9 | DDWL |
The calendar is busy for both. Real Sociedad are in the Europa League, and Athletic have had to squeeze in a rearranged league game at Levante.
Our prediction, and where to watch
I keep wanting to back Athletic here. San Mamés on a derby night is loud, and their defence has been decent, six conceded in seven games. But across three completed league games in September and October they scored once, and that was an own goal. Real Sociedad have also shown, in that Copa semi-final, that they can win in Bilbao. I'll go for a 1-1 draw, which would at least stop the bleeding for Terzić.
Athletic BilbaoReal SociedadIn Spain the game is on the usual LaLiga pay-TV platforms; in the US, LaLiga sits with ESPN. The card above lists the local channels. You can also watch Athletic Bilbao vs Real Sociedad free in HD on DAMITV, with no sign-up, through our LaLiga streams hub. If you want more Spanish football that weekend, our Racing Santander vs Real Madrid preview covers the Sunday afternoon game, and Atlético Madrid streams and Barcelona streams are on the same site. LaLiga's Basque derby page has the full head-to-head record.
