Question about athletic bilboa

Hope someone can help me here.

I have decided to start a new game and have gone everton and bilboa but for some reason when i buy i player for athletic all it keeps saying is he is not basque, does this mean i am only ever allowed to buy spanish players and not able to bring in anyone from abroad.

any help would be great as i never really play the spanish leagues.

thanks in advance

Athletic Bilbao have a club policy to only have players of Basque descent.

Very long story based in regional politics (appreciate that's much foreshortened so apologies in advance if it's not accurate or appropriate, i couldn't think of a better way of describing!).

It's extremely interesting - you should have a read, and it'll seem a little less strange....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athletic_Bilbao for starters.

It's a fun challenge to play - you should give it a go.

Upholding their traditions is obviously more important to them than winning trophies. It's an interesting challenge for sure.

Very long story based in regional politics. It's extremely interesting - you should have a read, and it'll seem a little less strange....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athletic_Bilbao for starters.

It's a fun challenge to play - you should give it a go.

I am currently about 10 games into my first season with them and i am running 5th so it is quite good and i am really enjoying it.

Just so you know, Basques are anybody from a region in Spain that also crosses over into France. Ribery, Alonso and Arteta are Basques.

Interestingly, the only three teams never to have been relegated from Spain's top division are Barcelona (main Catalan side), Real Madrid (main "Spanish" side, Franco's team) and Athletic Bilbao (main Basque side). If it was Britain, they are the equivalent of Celtic/Rangers, Arsenal, and Cardiff.

How are they the equivalent of Celtic/Rangers, Arsenal and Cardiff when Celtic and Rangers don't play in the same league as the other two, and Cardiff haven't been in the top flight for years?

different regions of the UK

OP - might want to have a read through the official FM10 Athletic Bilbao thread as i'm sure there is some good info and tips.

Ribery basque?? in a interview i read from him he was talking about growing up speaking onlu Flemish, which is a northern France and Belgian language, which is also a few thousand miles from the Basque regions unless he has parent or grandparent from there

Ribery basque?? in a interview i read from him he was talking about growing up speaking onlu Flemish, which is a northern France and Belgian language, which is also a few thousand miles from the Basque regions unless he has parent or grandparent from there

I'm sure he's from Boulogne...

Well, to clarify a bit, used the google translator, so could be some mistake in the grammar.

Emerged in 1898 in Bilbao, Athletic Club Bilbao was the solution to the anxieties of young people from Bilbao to import that hard and brave sport that had been practiced in England from year ago. Closely linked commercially to the islands, the town soon soaked the excellence of this strange and rude British crowd: football had come to Bilbao. That current pro-British of the late nineteenth century, coupled with the industrial boom that was lived in Vizcaya, brought many workers and engineers from Britain, who probably had introduced the sport in the Botxo successful.

After joining with Bilbao Football Club in 1901, then known as Biscay dispute their first matches with an air of formality Bordigala against Bordeaux. The harvested two wins against the French and, above all, victory in the first edition of the Championship of Spain in 1902, favoring the two clubs finally merging in 1903, setting as the final name of Athletic Club.

Since that first championship in Spain, Athletic Anglo presented several players in their ranks. MacLenan, Evans, Langford and Davies were the first English players to wear the shirt then Biscay blue and white, which were followed in the coming years the Cockram, Mills, Dyer, Graham, Burns, Smith, Sloop, Martins or Veith players who contributed their invaluable experience to the then still fledgling sport of football. With them, Athletic won five Cups of Spain (now Copa del Rey) and began to forge his legend of "team butler.

The result of the rivalry since back then, and the domain of Athletic in the duels that faced both teams, Real Sociedad de San Sebastian (founded in 1909, after playing several years under the name of San Sebastian Football Club), led a formal complaint of several teams at Athletic Bilbao for fielding English players in his team and comes to withdraw from the competition at what was considered "abuse" by the team Biscay.

The year was 1911. The end of the story of aliens in the Athletic Club de Bilbao. Played in their pride, Bilbao decided, thereafter, only play with players from their land.

different regions of the UK

So that means Barcelona, Real Madrid and Athletic Bilbao can also be compared to Barnet, Merthyr Tydfil and Dumbarton.

I'm sure he's from Boulogne...

He is, Boulgne is in northern France, near Calais which is closer to London than anywhere basque

Interestingly, the only three teams never to have been relegated from Spain's top division are Barcelona (main Catalan side), Real Madrid (main "Spanish" side, Franco's team) and Athletic Bilbao (main Basque side).

If it was Britain, they are the equivalent of Celtic/Rangers, Arsenal, and Cardiff.

How does your comparison work?

Where do Cardiff arrive? not a top flight team so?........

I think this one has run its course.... pretty clear that the example given was geographically figurative rather than literal, I'd suggest!