For the first 18 years of its existence, Viktoria Plzeň was a purely amateur club, although in 1922–23, they took their first foreign trip to Spain, where they won six out of nine matches. In June 1929, an extraordinary meeting of members agreed to go professional and enter the national professional league. Viktoria finished their first season in seventh place, but the very next season, improved and reached second place, which meant a first-ever promotion to the First League. In the 1934–35 Czechoslovak First League, Viktoria finished in fourth place and subsequently played in the 1935 Mitropa Cup, the top European club competition at the time. Two matches against Juventus brought Viktoria to the attention of European football at large. They drew 3–3 at home but lost 5–1 in Turin.