Granada Juvenil A wins División de Honor

Granada’s biggest news this weekend was not the first team. It was the club’s under-19s. Juvenil A won Group 4 of Spain’s División de Honor on Sunday, May 3, and did it in the nerviest way possible — with a late equalizer that turned a slipping title into a historic one. That matters because this is the top level of Spanish youth football, and Granada had never won this league group before. ### What exactly did Granada win? They won Group 4 of the División de Honor Juvenil, the highest national youth category in Spain for this age level. This is not a local academy cup or a minor regional title. It is the main league for elite U19 sides in their zone, and winning it puts Granada into the Copa de Campeones — the end-of-season tournament for the group winners. ### How did they clinch it? Granada went into the last round needing a result away at La Cañada Atlético. The match turned ugly for them early when the home side took the lead in the 17th minute — reports name the scorer as Chibi, with some local coverage also identifying the finisher as Darlython. Granada kept on to lock up the title. ### Why was that one goal so big? Because Granada did not need a win — they needed to avoid losing the title on the final day. For most of the afternoon, they were behind and the whole season was wobbling. Then Mario Jiménez, a midfielder who had already appeared for Granada’s first team earlier in the season, redirected the ball in from close range and basically changed the history of the academy with one touch. ### How good was this team over the season? Really good, and very steady. Granada finished with 80 points from 25 wins, five draws, and four defeats. That kind of record matters because youth titles can swing on volatility — players move fast, form swings, and squads change shape. Granada still held on across 34 matches and finished first in a competitive southern group. ### Who led the team? The side was coached by Sergio Ortiz, and the club framed the title as the payoff for work that started back in preseason in July. That is worth noticing because youth success is rarely about one dramatic afternoon alone. It usually means a full season of development, recruitment, and continuity landed at the same time. ### Why does this matter beyond youth football? Because for clubs like Granada, the academy is not just branding. It is pipeline. A title at this level signals that the club is producing players who can compete with the strongest youth setups in the region, and in Granada’s case one of the decisive players — like evidence the development line is getting stronger. ### What changes now? The immediate change is sporting — Granada moves on to the Copa de Campeones. The bigger change is reputational. Winning this group for the first time gives the academy a landmark it did not have before, and that tends to matter in recruiting, internal confidence, and how seriously a club’s youth structure gets taken. ### Bottom line? Granada Juvenil A did not