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Barcelona‘s run of 62 consecutive wins in Liga F was ended by Sevilla on Wednesday as they were held to a 1-1 draw.
Cristina Martin-Prieto gave Sevilla a surprise lead at the Estadio Jesus Navas, and for large parts of the second half it looked like the home side would hold on for a memorable three points.
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However, Ana-Maria Crnogorcevic scored a late equaliser to rescue Barca’s long unbeaten streak, but their run of victories in the league was brought to an end despite the late introduction of Ballon d’Or winner Alexia Putellas as she continues her return from an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury.
Barca last dropped points in Liga F in June 2021, when they were beaten by Atletico Madrid less than 48 hours after winning the Copa de la Reina.
After that defeat they won the five games remaining in that campaign and all 30 matches last season.
Before meeting Sevilla this week, where they fielded a heavily rotated side having already wrapped up a fourth successive title, they had won all 27 of their league matches, extending their winning run to 62 games.
They still have two games to come this season in the Spanish top flight — against Athletic Bilbao and Madrid CFF — and could end the term unbeaten again, but they can no longer repeat last year’s perfect campaign.
Barca’s winning run in the league stretched past 50 games in January. According to FIFA, they are the first team to have recorded such a feat in a fully professional league.
According to UEFA, the longest men’s domestic league winning streak in European football is held by Benfica, who won 29 games in a row between 1971 and 1973.
Data for the women’s game is more difficult to verify due to the lack of a professional structure until fairly recently.
However, both Arsenal and Lyon have registered long runs without losing in the 21st century. Arsenal were unbeaten in 108 league games between 2003 and 2009 — including a 51-game winning streak at one point — though the league was not professional at the time.
Lyon’s unbeaten run stretched 80 matches between 2016 and 2020 but they did not register 50 wins in a row during that stretch.
Barca host Athletic this weekend in their final home game of the season before travelling to Madrid CFF next week.
All thoughts will then turn to the Women’s Champions League final. After knocking Chelsea out in the semifinal, they will meet Wolfsburg in Eindhoven on June 3 as they go in search of their second-ever European trophy.
As well as Liga F, they have already won the Spanish Super Cup this season, although they will not add another Copa de la Reina to their honours after being thrown out of the competition for fielding an ineligible team in the round of 16.