THE USURPER LEAGUELa Liga 1987/88.
Without the usual suspects.
Real Sociedad win our alternative 1987/88 La Liga on 48 points from 34 matches. Atlético Madrid follow on 44 points. That's a 4-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 2nd, rather than first.
The 1987/88 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 | Real Sociedad | 34 | 21 | 6 | 7 | +28 | 48 |
| 2 | Atlético Madrid | 34 | 17 | 10 | 7 | +21 | 44 |
| 3 | Athletic Club | 34 | 15 | 11 | 8 | +10 | 41 |
| 4 | Celta Vigo | 34 | 13 | 10 | 11 | +5 | 36 |
| 5 | Sporting Gijón | 34 | 13 | 10 | 11 | +3 | 36 |
| 6 | Real Zaragoza | 34 | 11 | 13 | 10 | +7 | 35 |
| 7 | Osasuna | 34 | 13 | 9 | 12 | +7 | 35 |
| 8 | Cádiz CF | 34 | 11 | 13 | 10 | +5 | 35 |
| 9 | Real Valladolid | 34 | 12 | 11 | 11 | -2 | 35 |
| 10 | Sevilla FC | 34 | 12 | 9 | 13 | -4 | 33 |
| 11 | CD Logroñés | 34 | 12 | 9 | 13 | -11 | 33 |
| 12 | Espanyol | 34 | 10 | 11 | 13 | -8 | 31 |
| 13 | Valencia | 34 | 9 | 11 | 14 | -6 | 29 |
| 14 | Real Murcia CF | 34 | 9 | 11 | 14 | -6 | 29 |
| 15 | Real Betis | 34 | 12 | 5 | 17 | -7 | 29 |
| 16 | UD Las Palmas | 34 | 12 | 4 | 18 | -14 | 28 |
| 17 | CE Sabadell | 34 | 9 | 10 | 15 | -16 | 28 |
| 18 | RCD Mallorca | 34 | 8 | 11 | 15 | -12 | 27 |
What changed?
With every club present, Real Madrid lead our all-club calculation. Without the two excluded clubs, Real Sociedad finish first. Nobody has been awarded invented wins or imaginary goals.
The rules. Such as they are.
74 matches involving Real Madrid or FC Barcelona were removed. Victories were worth 2 points under the rules of 1987/88. Remaining clubs keep their recorded results.
See the all-club calculation (for comparison)
| # | Club | P | W | D | L | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Real Madrid | 38 | 28 | 6 | 4 | +69 | 62 |
| 2 | Real Sociedad | 38 | 22 | 7 | 9 | +28 | 51 |
| 3 | Atlético Madrid | 38 | 19 | 10 | 9 | +22 | 48 |
| 4 | Athletic Club | 38 | 17 | 12 | 9 | +7 | 46 |
| 5 | Osasuna | 38 | 15 | 10 | 13 | +6 | 40 |
| 6 | FC Barcelona | 38 | 15 | 9 | 14 | +5 | 39 |
| 7 | Celta Vigo | 38 | 14 | 11 | 13 | +3 | 39 |
| 8 | Real Valladolid | 38 | 13 | 12 | 13 | -3 | 38 |
| 9 | Sporting Gijón | 38 | 14 | 10 | 14 | -5 | 38 |
| 10 | Sevilla FC | 38 | 13 | 11 | 14 | -5 | 37 |
| 11 | Real Zaragoza | 38 | 11 | 14 | 13 | -2 | 36 |
| 12 | Cádiz CF | 38 | 11 | 13 | 14 | -7 | 35 |
| 13 | Valencia | 38 | 10 | 13 | 15 | -9 | 33 |
| 14 | Espanyol | 38 | 11 | 11 | 16 | -11 | 33 |
| 15 | Real Betis | 38 | 14 | 5 | 19 | -12 | 33 |
| 16 | CD Logroñés | 38 | 12 | 9 | 17 | -17 | 33 |
| 17 | Real Murcia CF | 38 | 9 | 13 | 16 | -11 | 31 |
| 18 | RCD Mallorca | 38 | 9 | 12 | 17 | -15 | 30 |
| 19 | CE Sabadell | 38 | 9 | 11 | 18 | -21 | 29 |
| 20 | UD Las Palmas | 38 | 12 | 5 | 21 | -22 | 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.