THE USURPER LEAGUELa Liga 1986/87.
Without the usual suspects.
Espanyol win our alternative 1986/87 La Liga on 47 points from 36 matches. Real Sociedad follow on 46 points. That's a 1-point lead over second place. The scores are real. The trophy, regrettably, is not.
Yes, the two biggest clubs are very good at football. We know. For this table, we've removed every match involving Real Madrid or FC Barcelona. The remaining fixtures keep their actual scores. In our full-league calculation they were 3rd, rather than first.
The 1986/87 table, without Madrid or Barça
Every match against either excluded club has been removed, including its points, goals and games played.
| # | Club | P | W | D | L | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Espanyol | 36 | 20 | 7 | 9 | +24 | 47 |
| 2 | Real Sociedad | 40 | 19 | 8 | 13 | +9 | 46 |
| 3 | Real Betis | 40 | 18 | 9 | 13 | +12 | 45 |
| 4 | Atlético Madrid | 40 | 18 | 9 | 13 | +11 | 45 |
| 5 | Athletic Club | 40 | 14 | 11 | 15 | +3 | 39 |
| 6 | Real Valladolid | 40 | 15 | 9 | 16 | +1 | 39 |
| 7 | UD Las Palmas | 40 | 16 | 7 | 17 | -3 | 39 |
| 8 | RCD Mallorca | 36 | 14 | 11 | 11 | -4 | 39 |
| 9 | Real Murcia CF | 40 | 16 | 7 | 17 | -9 | 39 |
| 10 | Sporting Gijón | 36 | 14 | 10 | 12 | +10 | 38 |
| 11 | Real Zaragoza | 36 | 13 | 12 | 11 | +2 | 38 |
| 12 | Sevilla FC | 40 | 14 | 10 | 16 | +1 | 38 |
| 13 | CE Sabadell | 40 | 12 | 13 | 15 | -14 | 37 |
| 14 | Osasuna | 40 | 11 | 14 | 15 | -4 | 36 |
| 15 | Racing Santander | 40 | 12 | 7 | 21 | -15 | 31 |
| 16 | Cádiz CF | 40 | 10 | 8 | 22 | -24 | 28 |
What changed?
With every club present, Real Madrid lead our all-club calculation. Without the two excluded clubs, Espanyol finish first. Nobody has been awarded invented wins or imaginary goals.
The rules. Such as they are.
84 matches involving Real Madrid or FC Barcelona were removed. Victories were worth 2 points under the rules of 1986/87. Remaining clubs keep their recorded results.
See the all-club calculation (for comparison)
| # | Club | P | W | D | L | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Real Madrid | 44 | 27 | 12 | 5 | +47 | 66 |
| 2 | FC Barcelona | 44 | 24 | 15 | 5 | +34 | 63 |
| 3 | Espanyol | 44 | 20 | 11 | 13 | +20 | 51 |
| 4 | Real Sociedad | 44 | 19 | 9 | 16 | +5 | 47 |
| 5 | Atlético Madrid | 44 | 18 | 11 | 15 | +4 | 47 |
| 6 | Sporting Gijón | 44 | 16 | 13 | 15 | +8 | 45 |
| 7 | Real Betis | 44 | 18 | 9 | 17 | +2 | 45 |
| 8 | Real Zaragoza | 44 | 15 | 14 | 15 | -1 | 44 |
| 9 | Athletic Club | 44 | 15 | 12 | 17 | +1 | 42 |
| 10 | RCD Mallorca | 44 | 15 | 12 | 17 | -17 | 42 |
| 11 | Real Valladolid | 44 | 15 | 11 | 18 | -3 | 41 |
| 12 | UD Las Palmas | 44 | 16 | 9 | 19 | -8 | 41 |
| 13 | Real Murcia CF | 44 | 17 | 7 | 20 | -13 | 41 |
| 14 | Sevilla FC | 44 | 14 | 11 | 19 | -2 | 39 |
| 15 | Osasuna | 44 | 12 | 14 | 18 | -8 | 38 |
| 16 | CE Sabadell | 44 | 12 | 14 | 18 | -21 | 38 |
| 17 | Racing Santander | 44 | 12 | 9 | 23 | -20 | 33 |
| 18 | Cádiz CF | 44 | 10 | 9 | 25 | -28 | 29 |
A note about the numbers
These are independent recalculations, not official LaLiga standings. Positions are ordered by points, goal difference and goals scored. Historic points deductions and the league's official head-to-head tiebreakers aren't recreated, so some rankings may differ from the official record.
Underlying match results: Jack-Tilley/es-espana (CC0 archive). Each match involving Madrid or Barça is excluded in full. Season-specific gaps and formats are noted where relevant.
Feel like arguing about the result? Good. That's rather the point.