Born in Olaberria, Gipuzkoa, Basque Country,[2] Begiristain began his professional career with Real Sociedad in 1982 at the age of 18, being immediately cast into the first-team's setup.

After 16 La Liga games in his first season, he became an essential member of the side that was coached by John Toshack, also including Luis Arconada, Roberto López Ufarte, José Mari Bakero and Luis López Rekarte; the highlights of his career at Real included scoring the second goal in the 1987 Copa del Rey final against Atlético Madrid, which was eventually won on penalties after the 2–2 draw.

[7] In 1995, after gradually losing his importance with Barcelona (although he still registered 44 games and 13 goals over the last two seasons), Begiristain signed for Deportivo de La Coruña, where he linked up with two past acquaintances, Toshack and López Rekarte.

[8] During the last season in Galicia, Begiristain only appeared ten times, but scored against Extremadura in the final round, granting Depor a third-place finish with the 1–0 win.

[12] He represented the nation at UEFA Euro 1988 and the 1994 FIFA World Cup, playing his last game in the latter competition, a 3–0 round-of-16 win over Switzerland where he closed the score from a penalty.