Athletic Club left waiting after Rayo Vallecano match abandoned
Rayo Vallecano’s match against Athletic Club was abandoned after supporters repeatedly threw paper planes and small balls onto the pitch during protests against president Raúl Martín Presa. Mundo Deportivo reported on Monday, October 12, that the first objects appeared in the 13th minute and that referee José María Sánchez Martínez ultimately ordered the teams off after the protest resumed.
The interruption leaves Athletic with another rearranged fixture in a season already disrupted by postponements. The club’s delegation returned to Bilbao after LaLiga decided the match would not be played later that day or on Sunday, October 11.
Repeated launches brought the match to a halt
Chants and banners directed at Presa greeted the teams before the incident escalated. In the 13th minute, supporters behind the goal occupied by Unai Simón began throwing small balls and paper planes onto the field. Mundo Deportivo noted that a message printed on the paper planes indicated the protest had been planned.
Sánchez Martínez stopped play, and the teams resumed after several minutes. When objects were thrown again, the referee sent the players to the dressing rooms and activated the match protocol. Play restarted once more, but the launches recurred, prompting the definitive suspension.
| Stage | What happened |
|---|---|
| Before kick-off | Supporters chanted and displayed banners against Presa. |
| 13th minute | Paper planes and small balls were thrown onto the pitch. |
| After play resumed | Further launches led to the match being abandoned. |
The protest was not an isolated episode. Mundo Deportivo reported that opposition to Presa had continued for years, and that a week earlier, during a friendly against Cagliari, there had been graffiti and an attempt to enter the directors’ box. Rayo forward Sergio Camello had featured in the club’s build-up to the Athletic fixture, but the match itself lasted only briefly before events in the stands took over.
Athletic face another change to their schedule
The suspension adds to a disrupted opening stretch for Athletic: three of their first eight league commitments had changed dates. Their match at Levante was postponed because of heavy rain and the condition of the pitch, then rescheduled for October 21. The Vallecas fixture had no replacement date confirmed in Mundo Deportivo’s report.
The first potential opening in Athletic’s calendar was the week beginning November 2, with November 4 or 5 suggested as possibilities rather than agreed dates. The team were next scheduled to visit Valencia on Saturday, October 17, for the ninth round of La Liga. Mundo Deportivo noted that Athletic had last played a competitive match on September 19, meaning the long gap between league appearances would continue even as the postponed fixture remained unresolved.
