After two years in LaLiga 2, Elche fans marked their return to the top flight with a rousing rendition of their club anthem Aromas Ilicitanos, producing a deafening din before kick-off.
It proved to be a moment of pride as the size of the task before them was made abundantly clear to Los Franjiverdes, as Betis comfortably controlled the opening 45 minutes.
Héctor Bellerín’s trickery created the first chance of the game, as he found Aitor Ruibal in the penalty box, but Matías Dituro was a match for the Spaniard’s half-volley.
However, Ruibal opened the scoring midway through the first half, as he raced onto a threaded through ball from Rodrigo Riquelme and rounded the keeper, allowing him to knock the ball into an empty net.
The hosts were wilting in the baking heat of the Alicante evening, with their best chance coming shortly before half time.
Sheer willpower saw Eder Sarabia keep the ball alive several times after their initial corner was cleared, with the ball eventually finding its way to Léo Pétrot, who dragged his shot wide to spurn the best opportunity to test Pau López.
The obvious gap in quality between the two teams led to continued domination for the away side in the second half, but with few clear chances being created, Elche grew in belief.
First, Germán Valera tested Pau López with a strike from outside the box, shortly before teasing a cross to the back post, where Álvaro Rodríguez acrobatically shot over from a tight angle.
Up the other end, Cucho Hernández missed a chance to seal the points when he failed to find the target, having bustled his way into a good position from the edge of the area.
With Betis continually wasting promising positions, their complacency was eventually punished with nine minutes remaining.
Valera had been central to any creative play produced by Elche throughout the game, and he stroked a simple finish home after a smart assist from Martim Neto.
It was a reward for the home side’s persistence and secured a valuable point ahead of a daunting trip to the Metropolitano Stadium next Saturday to face Atlético Madrid, while Betis will have the chance to recover quickly when they face host Deportivo Alavés on Friday.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Germán Valera (Elche)