The club was founded in 1963 as
Reyfra Atlético O.J.E. when
CD Reyfra (1963–64) and
CA Getafe merged. In 1970 it absorbed
Aviaco Madrileño CF, which was established in 1967 when
Madrileño CF (1956–67) and
AD Aviaco merged, became affiliated with Atlético Madrid and in 1970 changed its name to
Atlético Madrileño Club de Fútbol. In 1991, the club changed its name to
Atlético Madrid B for the 1991–92 season. Having already played from 1980 to 1986 in
Segunda División, the reserves fluctuated between that level and
Segunda División B – created in 1977 as the new third division – in the following decades. In the
1998–99 season, the team (which featured
Rubén Baraja, future
Valencia and
Spain star in central
midfield) finished in second position in the second division, but was ineligible for
La Liga promotion –
Numancia gained the automatic promotion slot instead. The
following year, they were administratively relegated as the first team that went down from La Liga, and in
2000–01 they missed out on promotion in
the play-offs but would have been ineligible in any case as the seniors failed to achieve the same goal (they went back up a year later). The entire 2000s were spent in the third level, but several players continued to make the transition to the first team, including
David de Gea,
Álvaro Domínguez,
Antonio López,
Gabi,
Mario Suárez,
Koke,
Ignacio Camacho,
Saúl Ñíguez,
Thomas Partey and
Lucas Hernandez. In
2020–21, a poor on-field season combined with reorganisation of the league structure meant that the team was relegated not to the fourth tier but the fifth (
Tercera División RFEF), having only spent two seasons below the third level since their first few years of existence over 50 years earlier. They returned within two years, with the second promotion via the
2023 Segunda Federación play-offs. On 1 July 2025, the club recovered their historical name of Atlético Madrileño. ==Naming history==