THE USURPER LEAGUELa Liga 2003/04.
Without the usual suspects.
Valencia win our alternative 2003/04 La Liga on 70 points from 34 matches. Deportivo La Coruña follow on 65 points. That's a 5-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 1st, rather than first.
The 2003/04 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 | 21 | 7 | 6 | +42 | 70 |
| 2 | Deportivo La Coruña | 34 | 19 | 8 | 7 | +24 | 65 |
| 3 | Atlético Madrid | 34 | 15 | 9 | 10 | +3 | 54 |
| 4 | Athletic Club | 34 | 14 | 10 | 10 | +6 | 52 |
| 5 | Sevilla FC | 34 | 14 | 9 | 11 | +13 | 51 |
| 6 | Real Betis | 34 | 13 | 11 | 10 | +5 | 50 |
| 7 | Villarreal | 34 | 14 | 7 | 13 | -2 | 49 |
| 8 | Málaga | 34 | 14 | 6 | 14 | -3 | 48 |
| 9 | RCD Mallorca | 34 | 14 | 6 | 14 | -8 | 48 |
| 10 | Albacete Balompié | 34 | 13 | 8 | 13 | 0 | 47 |
| 11 | Osasuna | 34 | 10 | 13 | 11 | -1 | 43 |
| 12 | Real Zaragoza | 34 | 12 | 7 | 15 | -7 | 43 |
| 13 | Espanyol | 34 | 13 | 4 | 17 | -8 | 43 |
| 14 | Real Valladolid | 34 | 10 | 10 | 14 | -2 | 40 |
| 15 | Real Sociedad | 34 | 9 | 12 | 13 | -7 | 39 |
| 16 | Racing Santander | 34 | 10 | 9 | 15 | -15 | 39 |
| 17 | Celta Vigo | 34 | 8 | 11 | 15 | -17 | 35 |
| 18 | Real Murcia CF | 34 | 4 | 11 | 19 | -23 | 23 |
What changed?
With every club present, Valencia 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 3 points under the rules of 2003/04. Remaining clubs keep their recorded results.
See the all-club calculation (for comparison)
| # | Club | P | W | D | L | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Valencia | 38 | 23 | 8 | 7 | +44 | 77 |
| 2 | FC Barcelona | 38 | 21 | 9 | 8 | +24 | 72 |
| 3 | Deportivo La Coruña | 38 | 21 | 8 | 9 | +26 | 71 |
| 4 | Real Madrid | 38 | 21 | 7 | 10 | +18 | 70 |
| 5 | Athletic Club | 38 | 15 | 11 | 12 | +4 | 56 |
| 6 | Sevilla FC | 38 | 15 | 10 | 13 | +11 | 55 |
| 7 | Atlético Madrid | 38 | 15 | 10 | 13 | -2 | 55 |
| 8 | Villarreal | 38 | 15 | 9 | 14 | -2 | 54 |
| 9 | Real Betis | 38 | 13 | 13 | 12 | +3 | 52 |
| 10 | Málaga | 38 | 15 | 6 | 17 | -5 | 51 |
| 11 | RCD Mallorca | 38 | 15 | 6 | 17 | -12 | 51 |
| 12 | Osasuna | 38 | 11 | 15 | 12 | +1 | 48 |
| 13 | Real Zaragoza | 38 | 13 | 9 | 16 | -9 | 48 |
| 14 | Albacete Balompié | 38 | 13 | 8 | 17 | -8 | 47 |
| 15 | Real Sociedad | 38 | 11 | 13 | 14 | -4 | 46 |
| 16 | Racing Santander | 38 | 11 | 10 | 17 | -15 | 43 |
| 17 | Espanyol | 38 | 13 | 4 | 21 | -16 | 43 |
| 18 | Real Valladolid | 38 | 10 | 11 | 17 | -10 | 41 |
| 19 | Celta Vigo | 38 | 9 | 12 | 17 | -20 | 39 |
| 20 | Real Murcia CF | 38 | 5 | 11 | 22 | -28 | 26 |
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.