June 21 (Reuters) - Real Oviedo sealed their return to LaLiga after 24 years with a 3–2 aggregate victory over Mirandes in Saturday’s promotion play-off.
Oviedo triumphed 3-1 at home, overturning a first-leg deficit with goals from Santi Cazorla, Ilyas Chaira and Francisco Portillo. A packed Estadio Carlos Tartiere erupted as fans stormed the pitch at the final whistle.
After 24 years Real Oviedo are back in LaLiga and the limbs are absolutely beautiful… pic.twitter.com/UHhfUic2Mk
— george (@StokeyyG2) June 21, 2025
At 40, Santi Cazorla could’ve retired in comfort. Instead, he returned to his boyhood club Real Oviedo on a minimum wage contract, donating 10% of his shirt sales.
Today, he scored one of the goals to secure Real Oviedo’s promotion to La Liga… After 24 years they are back in… pic.twitter.com/3vttp9QLbx— The Touchline | Football Coverage (@TouchlineX) June 21, 2025
THE FANS STORM THE PITCH AS OVIEDO WIN THE LALIGA PROMOTION FINAL AND ARE BACK IN THE FIRST DIVISION FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 24 YEARS pic.twitter.com/kIqPtkSy6h
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) June 21, 2025
The club from the Principality of Asturias, in the northwest of Spain, will now join Levante and Elche in next season’s top tier, replacing relegated Leganes, Las Palmas and Valladolid.
"There’s no way to describe what this means to us. These players are heroes, every single one of them. They deserve great recognition," Oviedo coach Veljko Paunovic told LaLiga TV.
(Reporting by Tommy Lund in Gdansk)
