Sotero Aranguren

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Aranguren and the second or maternal family name is Labairu.

Sotero Aranguren Labairu (7 May 1894 – 26 February 1922), was an Argentine footballer born in Buenos Aires who spent his youth in Basque Country. He was a midfielder and played most of his career for Real Madrid CF. He and his brother Eulogio were team-mates at Real Madrid.

Sotero

Sotero Aranguren in 1910s
Personal information
Full name	Sotero Aranguren Labairu
Date of birth	(1894-05-07)May 7, 1894
Place of birth	Buenos Aires, Argentina
Date of death	(1922-02-26)February 26, 1922
Place of death	San Sebastián, Spain
Position(s)	Midfielder

Biography

He played for Real Madrid for seven years, between 1911 and 1918, scoring 4 goals in 60 matches.

He is considered "the first white symbol" by the Real Madrid official website.^[1]

His premature death at the age of 28 led the club to build a statue representing Sotero and one of his team-mates, Machimbarrena (who also died young) at the entrance of the first team's locker room.^{[citation needed]} The statue, added in 1925, now stands at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium, and is seen as a totem of inspiration for Real Madrid's coming generations of footballers.^{[citation needed]}

Sotero and Eulogio Aranguren were the first Argentine men's footballers who played for Real Madrid.^{[citation needed]}

Honours

Real Madrid

• Copa del Rey: 1917
• Campeonato Regional Centro: 1912–13, 1915–16, 1916–17

External links

• Sotero's biography at Real Madrid official website (Spanish)