Let's start with a bit of mixing of real and alt history: during the mid 20th Century, Spain and Portugal were under the command of authoritarian regimes (Portugal since 1926 and Spain since 1939). Given these regimes were not only authoritarian but also Fascist-esque, people were ruled by very strict rules about the divertissement and leisure, including football/soccer.
The Spanish La Liga, which was cancelled in 1935/36 due to the Civil War, was never taken up again, and in Portugal the Primeira Liga (Experimental) was created in 1934/35, which would be hold until the 1937/38 season, after which the government decided to cancel the competition. Due to these actions, football/soccer stayed at amateur level for many years.
Things changed in the mid 70's: in 1974 the Revolução dos Cravos (Carnation Revolution) took place in Portugal, ending with the Estado Novo (New State), approving a democratic constitution in 1976. And in Spain Franco died in 1975, giving way to a democratic state.
After both countries overcame the dictatorships, they decided to join forces and created a joint league, in order to help the clubs grow and become strong enough to be able to compete in European competitions.
That's how the Liga Ibérica de Fútbol/Futebol (L.I.F.) was born. The Spanish and Portuguese agreed to create a league composed of 22 teams (12 from Spain and 10 from Portugal) and each team would play 42 matches per season.
The LIF is still hold nowadays, and among its clubs there are some of the best teams and players in the World. This is the league current logo:
And this is the list of the current clubs and the cities in where they play:
Spain:
- Madrid: Sporting de Madrid and Racing Club de Madrid
- Barcelona: Unió Esportiva Catalana and Dynamo Barcelona
- Valencia: Club Deportivo Valencia
- Sevilla: Híspalis Club de Fútbol and Atlético Guadalquivir
- Zaragoza: Gimnástica Zaragozana
- Murcia: R̶e̶a̶l̶ ̶M̶u̶r̶c̶i̶a̶ ̶C̶l̶u̶b̶ ̶d̶e̶ ̶F̶ú̶t̶b̶o̶l̶ Recreativo de Murcia
- Mallorca: Athletic Balear
- Bilbao: Sociedad Deportiva Bilbao
- Vigo: Racing de Vigo
Portugal:
- Lisboa: Atlético Clube de Lisboa and União Lisboeta
- Porto: Sociedade Desportiva Portuense and Associação Académica de Porto
- Braga: Futebol Clube Vitória de Braga and Grupo Desportivo de Braga
- Funchal: Madeira Clube de Futebol
- Coimbra: Sporting de Coimbra
- Setúbal: Clube de Futebol Sadino
- Faro: Clube Desportivo Formosa
You can find the club's locations in the followig map:
In the posts I'll be alternating between Spanish and Portuguese clubs, providing a bit of background for each one.
