50 free Atletico Madrid trivia questions with answers — sports quiz, new questions added Aug 2026.
Atlético Madrid began in 1903 as a Madrid branch of Athletic Bilbao, founded by three Basque students, and has spent more than a century as the city's rebellious second club, the Colchoneros whose stripes supposedly came from mattress ticking. This 50-question quiz covers the whole story: the Aviación merger and the first titles under Ricardo Zamora, Helenio Herrera's double, the 1962 Cup Winners' Cup, the heartbreaking 1974 European Cup final, Luis Aragonés's four spells, Jesús Gil's chaotic reign, the 1996 double, the Torres years and relegation, and Diego Simeone's revolution with Europa League wins, two league titles and two Champions League finals. There are questions on the Metropolitano, the nicknames, the badge, the Columbia Pictures shirts, the Madrid derby, the club's ownership twists and its records. Fifty questions, four options each, with a short explanation after every answer. Play on your phone, share your score, or print it for a quiz night.
30 of 50 questions with answers and explanations. Play the quiz
Q 01The club was founded in 1903 as a branch of which other Spanish club?
Athletic Bilbao
Three Basque students set it up after watching Athletic win that year's Copa del Rey final in Madrid.
Q 02In which year was the club founded?
1903
It became independent of its Bilbao parent club in 1921.
Q 03What colours did the club originally play in?
Blue and white halves
They were Athletic Bilbao's colours at the time; the red and white stripes arrived in 1911.
Q 04The nickname Los Colchoneros refers to which trade?
Mattress makers
Red and white striped cloth was used for mattress ticking, and offcuts supposedly became shirts.
Q 05Board member Juan Elorduy reputedly bought red and white shirts from which English club in 1909?
Southampton
He had failed to find Blackburn kits; a 2023 investigation proposed Sunderland as an alternative source.
Q 06Unlike parent club Bilbao, what did Atlético keep when adopting red and white shirts?
Blue shorts
Bilbao later switched to black shorts, while Atlético kept blue shorts as part of its kit for more than a century.
Q 07Who managed the club in its debut La Liga season, 1929?
Fred Pentland
The Englishman's side were relegated after two seasons.
Q 08With which club did Athletic merge in 1939?
Aviación Nacional
It had been founded by three Spanish Air Force officers in 1937.
Q 09Which legendary goalkeeper managed the club to its first La Liga title in 1939–40?
Ricardo Zamora
The title was retained in 1941; captain Germán Gómez led the midfield.
Q 10Why did the club change 'Athletic' to 'Atlético' in 1940?
A Franco decree banned foreign names
The military association was dropped from the name in 1946, giving the current Club Atlético de Madrid.
Q 11Which coach led Atlético to league titles in 1950 and 1951?
Helenio Herrera
Larbi Benbarek was the star; the club slipped behind Real and Barcelona after Herrera left in 1953.
Q 12Atlético's 1962 Cup Winners' Cup final win came against which Italian club?
Fiorentina
It took a replay, and it remains the one major European trophy Real Madrid never won.
Q 13Which English club beat Atlético 5–1 in the 1963 Cup Winners' Cup final?
Tottenham Hotspur
Atlético had beaten Real in two straight Copa del Rey finals in 1960 and 1961 under ex-Real coach José Villalonga.
Q 21Atlético lost the 1986 Cup Winners' Cup final 3–0 to which club?
Dynamo Kyiv
It was the club's third straight European final defeat.
Q 22Which controversial politician became club president in 1987?
Jesús Gil
He seized 95% of the shares in 1992 without paying and ran the club until 2003.
Q 23Which future Real Madrid star left Atlético's academy when Gil closed it in 1992?
Raúl
He was 15 at the time and went across the city.
Q 24Which Portuguese winger, fresh from winning the European Cup with Porto, was Gil's marquee signing?
Q 14Which stadium did Atlético open in 1966 on the Manzanares riverfront?
Vicente Calderón
The old Metropolitano was demolished for university buildings; the last game at the Calderón was in May 2017.
Q 15Which striker won the Pichichi three times running, 1969–71?
José Eulogio Gárate
He also scored in the 1974 European Cup semi-final second leg against Celtic.
Q 16Which Argentine coach took Atlético to the 1974 European Cup final?
Juan Carlos Lorenzo
His cautious, disruptive style was controversial but won La Liga in 1973.
Q 17Whose last-minute equaliser for Bayern forced a replay of the 1974 European Cup final?
Georg Schwarzenbeck
Aragonés's free kick had looked like the winner; Bayern won the replay 4–0.
Q 18Why did Atlético play in the 1974 Intercontinental Cup despite losing the European Cup final?
Bayern declined to take part
Atlético beat Independiente 2–0 at home after a 1–0 away defeat to take the trophy.
Q 19How many separate spells did Luis Aragonés have as Atlético coach?
Four
1974–80, 1982–87, 1991–93 and 2002–03, the last one bringing promotion back to La Liga.
Q 20Which Mexican striker won the Pichichi with Atlético in 1985 before joining Real Madrid?
Hugo Sánchez
He scored twice in that year's Copa del Rey final win over Athletic Bilbao and left after one season.
Paulo Futre
The spending brought only two Copa del Rey wins, in 1991 and 1992.
Q 25Which coach delivered the 1995–96 La Liga and Copa del Rey double?
Radomir Antić
His squad included Simeone, Kiko, Caminero and Pantić.
Q 26Which club knocked Atlético out of its first Champions League campaign in 1996–97?
Ajax
They went out in extra time in the quarter-finals.
Q 27Atlético were relegated in 2000; in which year did they win the Segunda División to return?
2002
Aragonés, in his fourth spell, took them up; they had narrowly missed promotion the year before.
Q 28At what age did Fernando Torres become the club's youngest ever captain?
19
He had been at the club since he was 11 and scored 13 league goals in his debut season.
Q 29Fernando Torres left Atlético in July 2007 for which club?
Liverpool
The €38 million sale came four years after a £28 million Chelsea bid was rejected.
Q 30Which film studio sponsored Atlético's shirts in 2003–04, changing the logo with each release?
Columbia Pictures
Sixteen film titles appeared, and the away shirt changed for Spider-Man 2; replica shirts carried no sponsor at all.