David Barral · Biography

On 27 August 2006, on the opening day of the Spanish second division, David Barral Torres made his debut for Sporting de Gijón at El Molinón against Real Valladolid, in a 3-1 defeat. Born on 10 May 1983 in San Fernando, in the province of Cádiz, the 1.80-metre centre-forward played in Spain, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Cyprus and Japan between 2002 and 2022. His longest spell was at Sporting, and his time at Levante left him as the club's top scorer in La Liga.

Youth football and the Real Madrid years

He came through the youth ranks in San Fernando, at Escuela San Martín, Club Deportivo San Servando and C. D. San Fernando. In 2002-03 he joined Real Madrid C in the Tercera División. The following year he went on loan to C. F. Fuenlabrada in the Segunda División B, scoring 17 goals in 34 league games and earning his way back. With Real Madrid Castilla he won promotion to the second division in 2004-05, and in 2005-06 he scored 3 goals in 27 matches at that level. In 2005 he played for the Real Madrid first team in the Trofeo Carlos Lapetra against Real Zaragoza at La Romareda.

Six seasons at Sporting de Gijón

He joined Sporting in the summer of 2006. In his first season he scored 9 goals in 37 games and was the team's second-highest scorer. In 2007-08 he added 11 goals as Sporting won promotion to La Liga. In 2008-09, back in the top flight, he finished as the team's top scorer with 14 goals, four of them in the Copa del Rey, and the club stayed up. In 2010-11 he reached his 100th La Liga appearance away to Málaga at La Rosaleda. In 2011-12 he wore the captain's armband and was again the team's top scorer, with 9 goals, in a season that ended in relegation. He left Gijón with 201 league appearances and 48 goals.

Orduspor and Levante

His move to Orduspor of the Turkish Süper Lig was announced on 5 July 2012, and he made his debut on 19 August 2012 against Mersin İdmanyurdu. On 26 June 2013 he signed for Levante. In his first season he was the team's top scorer with 7 goals. In 2014-15 he scored two hat-tricks, one of them in a 4-1 win over Málaga on 7 February 2015. On 10 May 2015, against Atlético de Madrid, he scored his 18th La Liga goal for Levante and passed Mustapha Riga's 17 to become the club's top scorer in the competition. He left with 18 goals in 67 league games.

The Emirates, Granada and a title in Cyprus

In July 2015 he moved to Al-Dhafra in the United Arab Emirates, scoring 3 goals in 10 games. On 24 January 2016 he returned to La Liga with Granada, playing 22 league games without scoring before leaving on 13 January 2017. That same month he joined APOEL Nicosia, and six days after signing he scored twice in a 7-0 win over AEZ Zakakiou. His 3 goals in 12 games contributed to the 2016-17 Cypriot First Division title, the only national championship of his career.

Cádiz, Japan and Racing de Santander

In July 2017 he returned to his home province to play for Cádiz in the second division. In 2017-18 he scored 6 goals in 28 league games, including one in a 3-0 win at El Molinón, his first visit to Sporting as an opponent. In 2018 he played for Tokushima Vortis in Japan's J2 League, scoring 9 goals in 16 games. In January 2019 he joined Racing de Santander and helped them win promotion to the second division in 2018-19. He left the Cantabrian club in July 2020 after 26 league games and 7 goals.

Internacional de Madrid and retirement

On 15 January 2021 he signed for Internacional de Madrid, then known as DUX, becoming the first footballer signed with a payment in bitcoin. He played two seasons in the Primera RFEF and retired in the summer of 2022, aged 39, amid the club's financial problems. He was never capped by the Spain national team; for the Andalusia regional side he scored both goals in a 2-1 win over Madrid in 2013. In April 2023 he joined Iker Casillas's team in the Kings League, the seven-a-side competition.