Page "Real Oviedo" Paragraph 5

When football in the country resumed in 1939, Oviedo were relegated to the second division, as their pitch was deemed unplayable – Francisco Franco's troops had used the stadium as an ammunition dump.

During the following decades, the club bounced back between the first ( 38 seasons ) and second levels ( 32 ), the high point being qualifying for the UEFA Cup after finishing a best-ever third in 1962 – 63 ( ranking joint-first with Real Madrid after the first 15 rounds ), while the lowest was the side's first relegation to Segunda División B, in 1978 ( for a single season ).