THE USURPER LEAGUELa Liga 1988/89.
Without the usual suspects.
Valencia win our alternative 1988/89 La Liga on 46 points from 34 matches. Atlético Madrid follow on 45 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 1988/89 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 | Valencia | 34 | 18 | 10 | 6 | +14 | 46 |
| 2 | Atlético Madrid | 34 | 19 | 7 | 8 | +30 | 45 |
| 3 | Real Zaragoza | 34 | 15 | 12 | 7 | +14 | 42 |
| 4 | Real Valladolid | 34 | 18 | 5 | 11 | +11 | 41 |
| 5 | Athletic Club | 34 | 14 | 10 | 10 | +12 | 38 |
| 6 | Celta Vigo | 34 | 13 | 11 | 10 | 0 | 37 |
| 7 | Sevilla FC | 34 | 13 | 10 | 11 | +6 | 36 |
| 8 | Real Oviedo | 34 | 12 | 11 | 11 | +3 | 35 |
| 9 | Sporting Gijón | 34 | 13 | 8 | 13 | +10 | 34 |
| 10 | Real Sociedad | 34 | 11 | 12 | 11 | -5 | 34 |
| 11 | CD Logroñés | 34 | 9 | 16 | 9 | -7 | 34 |
| 12 | Cádiz CF | 34 | 9 | 14 | 11 | -1 | 32 |
| 13 | Osasuna | 34 | 12 | 8 | 14 | -5 | 32 |
| 14 | Málaga | 34 | 12 | 7 | 15 | -9 | 31 |
| 15 | Espanyol | 34 | 7 | 15 | 12 | -7 | 29 |
| 16 | Real Betis | 34 | 9 | 11 | 14 | -8 | 29 |
| 17 | Real Murcia CF | 34 | 8 | 6 | 20 | -25 | 22 |
| 18 | Elche | 34 | 4 | 7 | 23 | -33 | 15 |
What changed?
With every club present, Real Madrid lead our all-club calculation. Without the two excluded clubs, Valencia 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 1988/89. Remaining clubs keep their recorded results.
See the all-club calculation (for comparison)
| # | Club | P | W | D | L | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Real Madrid | 38 | 25 | 12 | 1 | +54 | 62 |
| 2 | FC Barcelona | 38 | 23 | 11 | 4 | +54 | 57 |
| 3 | Valencia | 38 | 18 | 13 | 7 | +13 | 49 |
| 4 | Atlético Madrid | 38 | 19 | 8 | 11 | +24 | 46 |
| 5 | Real Valladolid | 38 | 18 | 7 | 13 | +9 | 43 |
| 6 | Real Zaragoza | 38 | 15 | 13 | 10 | +6 | 43 |
| 7 | Athletic Club | 38 | 15 | 12 | 11 | +10 | 42 |
| 8 | Celta Vigo | 38 | 14 | 11 | 13 | -6 | 39 |
| 9 | Sevilla FC | 38 | 13 | 12 | 13 | -1 | 38 |
| 10 | Osasuna | 38 | 13 | 11 | 14 | -4 | 37 |
| 11 | Real Sociedad | 38 | 11 | 14 | 13 | -9 | 36 |
| 12 | Sporting Gijón | 38 | 13 | 9 | 16 | 0 | 35 |
| 13 | Real Oviedo | 38 | 12 | 11 | 15 | -7 | 35 |
| 14 | CD Logroñés | 38 | 9 | 16 | 13 | -12 | 34 |
| 15 | Cádiz CF | 38 | 9 | 15 | 14 | -10 | 33 |
| 16 | Málaga | 38 | 12 | 9 | 17 | -14 | 33 |
| 17 | Espanyol | 38 | 7 | 16 | 15 | -15 | 30 |
| 18 | Real Betis | 38 | 9 | 11 | 18 | -19 | 29 |
| 19 | Real Murcia CF | 38 | 9 | 6 | 23 | -31 | 24 |
| 20 | Elche | 38 | 4 | 7 | 27 | -42 | 15 |
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.