1939–40 La Liga
9th season of La Liga
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The 1939â40 La Liga was the ninth season since its establishment and the first one after the Spanish Civil War, which forced the suspension of the competition for three years. The season started on 3 December 1939, and finished on 28 April 1940.
| Season | 1939â40 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Atlético Aviación (1st title) |
| Relegated | Betis Racing Santander |
| Matches | 132 |
| Goals | 501 (3.8 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Victorio Unamuno (20 goals) |
| Biggest home win | Sevilla 8â2 Racing Santander |
| Biggest away win | Betis 0â4 Madrid FC |
| Highest scoring | Athletic Bilbao 7â5 Barcelona |
| Longest winning run | 5 matches Atlético Aviación |
| Longest unbeaten run | 7 matches Sevilla |
| Longest winless run | 8 matches Zaragoza |
| Longest losing run | 4 matches Athletic Bilbao Celta Español Racing Santander |
â 1935â36 1940â41 â | |
Atlético Aviación won its first title ever.
Format changes
For this season, the team qualified in the 10th position would face the second qualified team from Segunda División in a single-game play-off at a neutral venue. The winner would play the next season of La Liga.
Team locations
Due to the several damages in Estadio Buenavista after the Spanish Civil War, Oviedo did not play this season. However, the Spanish Football Federation assured them a berth in the 1940â41 La Liga.
Athletic Madrid changed its name to Athletic Aviación, after its merge with Aviación Nacional. Despite being relegated to Segunda División, it remained in the league by winning a play-off match against Osasuna for occupying the vacant berth after the resignation of Oviedo. Due to the damages at Estadio Metropolitano de Madrid, they played their games during this season at Estadio ChamartÃn, and one game at Vallecas.
Celta and Zaragoza made their debut in La Liga.
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Atlético Aviación (C) | 22 | 14 | 1 | 7 | 43 | 29 | +14 | 29 | |
| 2 | Sevilla | 22 | 11 | 6 | 5 | 60 | 44 | +16 | 28 | |
| 3 | Athletic Bilbao | 22 | 11 | 4 | 7 | 57 | 44 | +13 | 26 | |
| 4 | Madrid FC | 22 | 12 | 1 | 9 | 47 | 35 | +12 | 25 | |
| 5 | Español | 22 | 11 | 2 | 9 | 43 | 43 | 0 | 24 | |
| 6 | Hércules | 22 | 9 | 5 | 8 | 41 | 34 | +7 | 23 | |
| 7 | Zaragoza | 22 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 30 | 40 | â10 | 21[a] | |
| 8 | Valencia | 22 | 9 | 3 | 10 | 40 | 36 | +4 | 21[a] | |
| 9 | Barcelona | 22 | 8 | 3 | 11 | 32 | 38 | â6 | 19[b] | |
| 10 | Celta (O) | 22 | 9 | 1 | 12 | 45 | 50 | â5 | 19[b] | Qualification for the relegation play-offs |
| 11 | Betis (R) | 22 | 6 | 4 | 12 | 26 | 51 | â25 | 16 | Relegation to the Segunda División |
| 12 | Racing Santander (R) | 22 | 6 | 1 | 15 | 37 | 57 | â20 | 13 |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) goal difference; 5) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions; (O) Play-off winners; (R) Relegated
Notes:
Results
Relegation play-off
The play-off match was played at Estadio ChamartÃn in ChamartÃn de la Rosa.
| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Celta | 1â0 | Deportivo La Coruña |
Top scorers
| Rank | Goalscorers | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Victorio Unamuno |
Athletic Bilbao | 20 |
| 2 | Raimundo Blanco |
Sevilla | 18 |
| 3 | Vilanova |
Hércules | 17 |
| 4 | Campanal I |
Sevilla | 16 |
| 5 | Guillermo Gorostiza |
Athletic Bilbao | 14 |
| AgustÃn |
Celta | ||
| Antonio Chas |
Racing Santander | ||
| Mundo |
Valencia | ||
| 9 | Manuel Alday |
Madrid FC | 13 |
| 10 | Simón Lecue |
Madrid FC | 12 |