Racing Santander’s return to La Liga is about far more than a draw

A goal, a draw and a return that felt bigger than football

Racing Santander’s first home match back in the first division since 2012 became a day of release, noise and tears as the club drew 2-2 with Villarreal after leading 2-0. The result meant Racing did not get the full reward for their bright start, but the afternoon at El Sardinero still landed as something much larger than a point in the table.

The moment that changed the mood came from 19-year-old Sergio Martínez, who produced a goal that turned a first top-flight appearance into something unforgettable. Racing were already ahead through Andrés Martín’s penalty when Martínez struck in the 34th minute, smashing the ball on the bounce into the top corner. It was his first game in the first division and only his third start for the club, and it came before a crowd of 22,413 that reacted as if it had been waiting years for exactly that release.

The Guardian Football’s match report described how Martínez had to steady himself after the goal, with emotion taking over once he realised what he had done. His captain, Álvaro Mantilla, said even the team could hardly process the moment. For a club and city that have lived through a long climb back to the top, the goal landed as a symbol of arrival as much as a piece of technique. The original reporting is here: The Guardian Football’s account of Racing’s dramatic homecoming.

How Racing built a day they had waited years to see

Racing’s return to the top flight was not simply the return of a famous shirt. It was the first time the club had played a first-division match at home since 2012, and for several figures involved it was their first experience of that level altogether. Mantilla, born and raised just 5km away, was making his own first appearance in the first division. So too was another 19-year-old from Santander, Jorge Salinas. Even veteran forward Sergio Canales, once an academy talent from the city, was back in Racing colours after 16 years away.

The atmosphere at El Sardinero reflected the scale of the occasion. The stadium, described in the source as more ground than stadium, was packed again, and the waterfront approach to the ground became part of the scene. Supporters in white Racing shirts and green away colours filled the area around the venue, turning the match into a city-wide celebration. On the roof, flags showed every first-division club, including Racing among them, as if the club had been restored to a place it had been missing for too long.

For the first 44 minutes, Racing looked capable of making the occasion even more complete. José Alberto López’s side were energetic, direct and positive, and Villarreal coach Iñigo Pérez admitted the pace and commitment were hard to handle. Racing’s 2-0 lead was earned through ambition rather than caution. Yet the top division is unforgiving, and within 67 seconds the advantage disappeared through goals from Pape Gueye and Nicholas Pépé.

A comeback, but not a collapse

For Racing, conceding twice so quickly could have ruined the story. Instead, the draw preserved both the point and the sense that the club had arrived for reasons deeper than one result. Villarreal finished third last season, so a 2-2 draw against them carried obvious value for a side likely to be in a fight for survival. More importantly, the result did not cancel out the emotional meaning of the afternoon.

That distinction matters because Racing’s return is rooted in one of the more severe collapses in recent Spanish football. The club were relegated in 2012 after a decade in the top flight, having played in Europe only three and a half years earlier and even beaten Manchester City along the way. The fall was steep and prolonged. Racing went straight down again and then spent seven of the next 10 years in Segunda B, the broad, awkward lower tier in which survival was as much institutional as athletic.

The financial side was even bleaker. Debt rose above €40m, including €14m owed to the state, while players and staff went unpaid. The club filed for bankruptcy in July 2011 and entered administration. The source reports a succession of failed or damaging regimes, including one in which two presidents later received jail sentences for embezzlement. Ahsan Ali Syed was welcomed as a saviour in 2011, spent €3.5m on a buyout and spoke of competing with Spain’s biggest clubs, but he later disappeared and was eventually arrested for fraud after being wanted by Interpol.

Why the comeback now feels sustainable

The rebuild only took shape when Racing’s leadership changed. Former player Manolo Higuera stepped in in 2015 and the club’s tone shifted toward realism and accountability. José Alberto López, who had once had to stop playing at 20 because of rheumatism and later worked at Ikea while coaching in Asturias, became coach in December 2022 and gradually stabilised the team. Racing survived, then finished seventh, then reached a playoff place, and eventually won the title.

A further turning point came when Sebastián Ceria bought a controlling stake for €30m. A philanthropist and academic with family ties to Cantabria, he brought a new focus on stability and the people around the club. By December 2024, the final administration payments had been met and the debts were cleared after 13 years. That recovery has been as much administrative as sporting, restoring assets, confidence and a sense of belonging.

That is why the draw with Villarreal matters beyond the table. It marks Racing’s place back in the first division, but it also confirms the club’s transformation from a debt-ridden, fractured institution into one that can host a night like this again. The result will count later in the season, especially in the struggle to stay up. For now, it stands as proof that Racing are back where they believe they belong, and that the journey itself has already become part of the club’s identity.