Sitting on the terraces on a warm evening at Málaga CF’s La Rosaleda Stadium is a real pleasure for football fans. No wonder so many ex-pat residents of the Costa del Sol have become season ticket holders there. In spite of languishing in the Spanish 2nd Division Málaga CF’s for the last few seasons the club has continued to attract a healthy following for many home games. However, with a capacity of 29,500 visitors can usually get Málaga football tickets at the club shop in the week leading up to a match or on the day of the game.
Almost unbelievably, Malaga CF were relegated to the third tier (Primera Federación) of Spanish football at the end of the 2022-23 season. However, they secured an immediate return to Spain’s second tier of football following a dramatic promotion campaign in the 2023/24 season.
Málaga were strong throughout their year in the Primera Federación, finishing third in the league. While they couldn’t catch the automatically promoted CD Castellón, who finished 12 points ahead, they earned a spot in the promotion playoffs.
The promotion journey was filled with excitement. In the first round of playoffs, Málaga narrowly overcame Celta B with a 4-3 aggregate victory. This set up a final showdown against Gimnàstic de Tarragona, who had finished second in the regular season.
The two-legged final was a rollercoaster with Málaga winning the first leg at home 2-1, but Gimnàstic forcing extra time in the second leg with an early goal. Despite falling 2-0 behind in extra time, Málaga scored twice in the second half of extra time, drawing the match 2-2 and winning 4-3 on aggregate. This thrilling victory sealed Málaga’s promotion back to the Segunda División and potentially sets the stage for a push towards La Liga in the future.
Málaga Football Fixtures 2024-25
| Provisional Date | Home Team | Away Team | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18th August | Racing de Ferrol | Málaga CF | A Malata |
| 25th August | Málaga CF | Mirandés | La Rosaleda |
| 1st September | Málaga CF | Albacete | La Rosaleda |
| 8th September | Córdoba | Málaga CF | El Arcángel |
| 15th September | Málaga CF | Huesca | La Rosaleda |
| 22nd September | Granada | Málaga CF | Los Cármenes |
| 29th September | Málaga CF | Elche | La Rosaleda |
| 6th October | Deportivo de La Coruña | Málaga CF | Riazor |
| 13th October | Cádiz | Málaga CF | Nuevo Mirandilla |
| 20th October | Málaga CF | Real Oviedo | La Rosaleda |
| 23rd October | Tenerife | Málaga CF | Heliodoro Rodríguez López |
| 27th October | Málaga CF | Eibar | La Rosaleda |
| 3rd November | Levante | Málaga CF | Ciudad de Valencia |
| 10th November | Málaga CF | Cartagena | La Rosaleda |
| 17th November | Zaragoza | Málaga CF | La Romareda |
| 24th November | Málaga CF | Racing de Santander | La Rosaleda |
| 1st December | Castellón | Málaga CF | Castalia |
| 8th December | Málaga CF | Almería | La Rosaleda |
| 15th December | Burgos | Málaga CF | El Plantío |
| 18th December | Málaga CF | Eldense | La Rosaleda |
| 22nd December | Sporting de Gijón | Málaga CF | El Molinón |
| 11th January | Málaga CF | Deportivo de La Coruña | La Rosaleda |
| 19th January | Mirandés | Málaga CF | Anduva |
| 26th January | Málaga CF | Zaragoza | La Rosaleda |
| 2nd February | Racing de Santander | Málaga CF | El Sardinero |
| 9th February | Málaga CF | Levante | La Rosaleda |
| 16th February | Cartagena | Málaga CF | Cartagonova |
| 23rd February | Málaga CF | Tenerife | La Rosaleda |
| 2nd March | Almería | Málaga CF | Juegos del Mediterráneo |
| 9th March | Málaga CF | Cádiz | La Rosaleda |
| 16th March | Albacete | Málaga CF | Carlos Belmonte |
| 23rd March | Málaga CF | Racing de Ferrol | La Rosaleda |
| 30th March | Real Oviedo | Málaga CF | Carlos Tartiere |
| 6th April | Málaga CF | Córdoba | La Rosaleda |
| 13th April | Huesca | Málaga CF | El Alcoraz |
| 20th April | Eibar | Málaga CF | Ipurúa |
| 27th April | Málaga CF | Castellón | La Rosaleda |
| 4th May | Málaga CF | Granada | La Rosaleda |
| 11th May | Eldense | Málaga CF | Pepico Amat |
| 18th May | Málaga CF | Sporting de Gijón | La Rosaleda |
| 25th May | Elche | Málaga CF | Martínez Valero |
| 1st June | Málaga CF | Burgos | La Rosaleda |
You should check the Málaga Club de Fútbol website to confirm ticket information and upcoming fixtures. The Liga de Fútbol Profesional Website confirms kick-off day and time just over a week before the game.
What Happened to Málaga CF?
Considering the current state of affairs at Málaga CF, it’s hard to believe that they almost reached the Champions League semi-final as recently as the 2012-13 season. With Manuel Pellegrini as manager they had a host of top notch players in their ranks including Isco, Demichelis, Joaquin, Julio Baptista, and Roque Santa Cruz. Having already beaten Porto in the first knockout stage they came up against Jurgen Klopp’s Borussia Dortmund in the quarter-final.
Following a 0-0 draw in the first-leg at La Rosaleda, Málaga went to Dortmund as underdogs and were robbed of victory by a contentious refereeing decision in the dying seconds. With 89 minutes on the clock Málaga were leading 1-2 but two injury time goals from Borussia Dortmund including a blatant offside put them out of the competition.
GOAL! Borussia Dortmund 3-2 Málaga (Felipe Santana, 90+3 min)
Unbelievable! Incredible! Incomprehensible! Lewandowski crosses from the left – four Borussia players offside – and it ping-pongs around a bit before breaking to Santana – offside again – who taps in from a yard. What were those Scottish officials thinking there?
The Guardian: Live Blog (9th April 2013)
The club’s Qatari owner had spent €85 million in three transfer windows following his takeover of the club in 2010. But the club soon found itself in a precarious financial situation and was banned from European competition for the 2013-14 season for breaking Financial Fair Play rules. A number of star players moved on as they weren’t being paid and the club started to rely on free transfers.
At the end of the 2017-18 season the club was relegated to the 2nd tier of Spanish football following 10 seasons in the top flight. And in May 2023 the club dropped into the regional 3rd division of Spanish football.
Málaga CF’s La Rosaleda Stadium
Getting to La Rosaleda
The Málaga football stadium lies less than 3km from the Álameda Principal in the city centre. It’s only a short distance off the MA-20 road through Málaga (see map below) so is easily accessible from the resorts of the Costa del Sol. Parking is the shopping centre next to the stadium is a possibility but getting away aftervthe match takes ages. There is some street parking but local police have a ball issuing tickets at some matches. It’s easier (and allows you to have a beer) to either book a seat on a coach being with the Málaga Supporters Club who are mainly British ex-pats who live on the Costa del Sol and follow Málaga CF. Otherwise get the train to Málaga which stops at Málaga Centro-Álameda and you can walk to the stadium in about 15 minutes. The number 17 bus from the Álameda Principal also goes to the stadium.
La Rosaleda Stadium Plan
Just check out the following map of the stadium to help you decide where you’d prefer sit before ordering tickets.
