Atalanta BC have taken off today for Seville for the friendly international match, the third international commitment in December thus far, to be played against the home side of Real Betis Balompié on the day before Christmas’ Eve.
After the matches against, respectively, Eintracht Frankfurt (which resulted in the 2-2 draw at the end of 90 minutes and with the German side lifting the 25th “Trofeo Achille e Cesare Bortolotti” only after penalties) and OGC Nice (with our black-and-blue lads imposing themselves 3-0 over Les Aiglons), third come the Spanish rivals of Real Betis, last but one test before Atalanta’s sporting send-off to 2022 with the match against the Dutch team AZ Alkmaar to be hosted at the Gewiss Stadium on December 29.
The kick-off time for the fixture to be held at the Benito Villamarin Stadium in Seville is set at 17:00 CET.
Bearing the official name of Real Betis Balompiè, the Sevillian club have the foundation date in common with Atalanta, as they were both founded in 1907. Throughout their over 100-year-old history, the palmares of the Andalusian side comprises, along with the league title won in the 1934-1935 season, three Copa del Rey (King’s Cup) lifted, respectively, in 1977, 2005 and, most recently, in 2022. They also hold the record for the first-ever team from Andalusia to have played in the First Division of Spanish Football and the first to have ever competed in the current format of the UEFA Champions League. As a recap of Real Betis’ achievements last season, in addition to winning the national cup on penalties against Valencia, they made it to the round of 16 of the UEFA Europa League and finished 4th in La Liga.
Home to Real Betis’ matches is the Benito Villamarin stadium, a venue with a capacity of over 60,000 spectators.
Manuel Pellegrini has been at the helm of the team since 2020; the Chilean manager is renowned for his vast international experience having coached teams such as Real Madrid and Manchester City during the course of his career.
