Club Deportivo Izarra hail from the western region of Navarra and the small town of Estella-Lizarra. Founded in 1924 as Izarra Beti Aurrera, it was Franco’s insistence on clubs having names of Spanish origin, that led to the club adopting its present title in 1941. Izarra’s first home was the Campo de la Pieza del Conde, but in 1928, they moved out of town and south of the Rio Ega to their present home. Merkatondoa opened on 11 November 1928 with a match against CA Osasuna.
Much of what you see at Merkatondoa is as a result of building that took place in the 1987. It was smartened up at the start of the 09-10 season and an artificial surface was installed, which given that harsh winters you see in this part of Spain was a wise move. The stadium’s stand-out feature, apart from a natty blue surround to the pitch, is the main stand which has a raised seated tier with a propped cover. Just under 40 metres in length, it has 170 blue & white seats in the central section and concrete benches either side. On the opposite east side is a narrow covered terrace that runs the full length of the pitch, whilst the stadium’s only other terrace is found under a short cover on the northern side.
Prior to 1990, Izarra had played no higher than the Tercera. Since then, the club has clocked up 16 seasons in Segunda B and currently resides in the Segunda Federación. Unsurprisingly, Izarra has only made sporadic appearances in the Copa del Rey, reaching the Third Round on three occasions, the most recently in 2014-15, when they lost 3-2 to L’Hospitalet.
Prudent management of the club’s finances and an excellent youth academy, Javi Martínez & Carlos Gurpegui have both graduated from the youth set-up, have kept Izarra competitive & solvent. Unlike so many other small provincial club’s promoted to the higher divisions in recent years, CD Izarra knows its limits and cuts its cloth accordingly.
Estadios de España 