Álex Padilla

Alejandro "Álex" Padilla Pérez (born 1 September 2003) is a footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Bilbao Athletic. Born in Spain, he plays for the Mexico national under-23 team.

Early life
Padilla was born in Zarautz, Gipuzkoa, Basque Country to a Spanish father (from Bergara) and a Mexican mother, At three months old, he moved with his parents to his mother's hometown of Camargo, Chihuahua and lived there until age 7.

Club career
Padilla joined Athletic Bilbao's Lezama Facilities in 2019, from hometown side CD Zarautz. He made his senior debut with the farm team CD Basconia on 15 September 2021, starting in a 2–2 Tercera División RFEF away draw against CD Anaitasuna.

Promoted to the reserves in Primera Federación ahead of the 2022–23 season, Padilla first appeared with the side on 28 August 2022, starting in a 2–1 home loss to CF La Nucía. In 2023, he was called up to the pre-season with the main squad.

International career
On 2 September 2021, Padilla made his debut for the Spain U19's, coming on as a half-time substitute for Alejandro Iturbe in a 5–1 win against Mexico.

In November 2021, Padilla was included for Spain’s squad for the qualifying matches of the 2022 UEFA European Under-19 Championship. He started and played the full 90 minutes against Azerbaijan, as his side cruised to a 6–0 win, qualifying for the elite round. In the elite round, Padilla had played the full matches over Austria and Poland, suffering a 2–2 and 3–3 draw and finishing second behind Austria, thus failing to qualify for the final tournament.

In March 2024, Padilla was called up by the Mexico national under-23 team. On 22 March, Padilla made his debut for Mexico in a 2–4 defeat against Argentina.