Real Sociedad followed a similar signing policy of only Basque players as rivals Athletic, before signing Irish striker John Aldridge. While a strong Basque contingent has been retained among its players, nowadays both non-Basque Spaniards and foreign players are represented at the club. Its youth section post the all-Basque era has still been very successful in developing internationally renowned players, such as World Cup winners Xabi Alonso and Antoine Griezmann.Real Sociedad has competed in the UEFA Champions League twice. In the 2003–04 season, the club progressed to the round of 16 before losing to Lyon.