Betis 1-0 Real Sociedad: Riquelme volley settles tight La Liga contest (full match highlights)

Real Betis kicked off their La Liga campaign with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Real Sociedad at the Estadio de la Cartuja on August 21, 2026, with 59,127 fans in attendance. The only goal of the game arrived in the 63rd minute when Rodrigo Riquelme connected with Cucho Hernandez's lofted cross and volleyed home from close range. The visitors pushed hard for an equaliser, with Luka Sucic rattling the woodwork from Mikel Oyarzabal's knockdown, while Orri Oskarsson was denied by a brilliant one-on-one save from goalkeeper Alvaro Valles. Russian midfielder Arsen Zakharyan came on as a late substitute in the 87th minute but couldn't influence the result. Both teams were playing their season opener after their first-round fixtures were postponed. Five yellow cards were shown: Sergio Gomez in the 46th, Jon Aramburu in the 49th, Igor Zubeldia in the 61st, Nathan in the 80th, Fran Garcia in the 90th, and Hector Bellerin in the 90+3rd. Manuel Pellegrini's side secured their first three points of the season.