Club América

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América
Full name	Club de Fútbol América S.A. de C.V.
Nickname(s)	Aguilas, Azulcremas
Founded	October 12, 1916
Ground	Azteca, Mexico, DF
Capacity	129,000
Chairman	Guillermo Cañedo White
Head Coach	Luis Fernando Tena
League	Primera División
Apertura 2006	3rd (playoffs) 3rd (league) 2nd (group)
Home colours 　 Away colours

Club de Futbol América, most commonly known as just América, is a Mexican professional football club. América plays in the Primera División. The team is the one of the most popular and traditional football clubs in Mexico. América and Chivas share the distinction of being the most successful teams in league play - America with 10 professional championships, and Chivas with 11. The two also have a long-standing rivalry. Their meetings, which have become known as Clásicos are played twice a year and signal a national derby.

The team has also had success in international tournaments including 5 CONCACAF Champions' cups, tying Cruz Azul for the most titles all time, and two Copa Interamericana victories. América has also had strong showings in the Copa Libertadores, finishing as semi-finalists in Copa Libertadores 2000 and 2002. Recently, they finished 4th in the 2006 FIFA Club World Cup, losing to Egyptian club Al-Ahly in a third place match after losing to Barcelona.

Their club colors have been yellow and blue since the team's foundation. The team mascot is the eagle, one of which is flown around the stadium before important matches.

Contents 1 History 1.1 Foundation 1.2 Amateur Era 1.3 Professional Era 1.4 1940's Mexican League Beginnings 1.5 1950's-60's First League Title 1.6 1970's Signs of Greatness 1.7 1980's The Golden Age 1.8 1990's A Decade to Forget 1.9 2000's Return to the Top 2 Honors 2.1 National 2.2 International 2.3 Other Tournaments 2.4 América at the Copa Libertadores 3 Stadium 4 Rivalries 4.1 El Clásico Joven 4.2 El Clásico Mexicano 4.3 Other Rivalries 5 Current Roster 5.1 Reserve/Youth Squad 5.2 Squad changes for Clausura 2007 season 6 Notable Players 6.1 Scoring Champions 7 Selected Former Managers 8 Former Presidents 9 Sources/External Links

[edit] History

[edit] Foundation

In 1916, two students from Jesuit College, Rafael Garza Gutiérrez and Germán Nuñez Cortina, with other schoolmates met at German’s aunt’s house, located in Santa Maria la Ribera colony in Mexico City and formed a team, which was to be called 'Record.' Close to Mascarones Jesuit College was another prep school called La Perpetua College. A group of football players headed by Eugenio Cenoz had a team called 'Colon.' Colon had problems fielding 11 players and thought it would be best to unite with another team¹.

Players from Colon and Record met on 12 October 1916 to further their proposals and as a result had to come up with a new name. Many names were considered but it was Pedro 'Cheto' Quintanilla who had proposed America since they had formed a team on Columbus Day (Dia de las Americas), a day in which the Americas were discovered. The players soon designed a crest which had the map of the Americas encircled and placed a 'C' and an 'A' on both sides of the Americas to signify "Club America." After they had created their logo, the players had to decide on their team colors. Rafael got some of his father’s navy blue trousers and a yellow shirt and it was decided amongst the group that those would be the club's colours. Since then, they have shared the spot of being the most popular team in Mexico with Chivas de Guadalajara, their fiercest and most hated rival.

[edit] Amateur Era

In 1916, Club América had to prove themselves in order to be accepted into the Mexican League (Liga Mexicana de Aficionados de Futbol Asociacion)¹. Necaxa, Atlante, Real España, Germania, and Asturias were already members of the league when América wished to join the amateur league. América's acceptance into the league depended on 3 games. If they lost a single one, they would not be accepted into the league. América’s first game was against Germania. América won the game and was then scheduled to play against España, which resulted in a draw. América was accepted as a result and formed part of the league. Their first season did not go so well, but they were able to capture a fanbase. At the time, América was the only team in Mexico City with an all-Mexican club.

In 1918, the team changed its name to Union. The name didn’t stand too well and changed back to América in 1920². From 1924 to 1928, América were crowned league champions and were able to attract impressive crowds. In 1926, América became the first Mexican club to play outside of Mexico². Aside from broadening their horizons, Club América along with Atlante petitioned to reduce the number of foreign players in the league. Shortly after the Mexican Football Federation was formed in 1928, Rafael Garza Gutiérrez , América's founder, was designated as the National Team Head Coach. Most of the players that participated in the 1928 Olympics and 1930 World Cup were players that played for América.

[edit] Professional Era

[edit] 1940's Mexican League Beginnings

Up until 1942, every league in Mexico was considered a regional league even though the league in Mexico City was the strongest of them all. In 1942-43, the first National League was established and it was known as the Liga Mayor (Major League). Club America wasn't the team it was during the 1920s on through the early 1930s. Aging players, lack of resources, and lack of interest took a toll on the club which led the team to become a bottom feeder for much of the beginning stages of the professional era⁷.

[edit] 1950's-60's First League Title

In 1956, the club was sold to a soft drink manufacturer. The new owner was trying to build upon the club's National Cup titles in 1954 and 1955 against Guadalajara, their soon to be nemesis. To the dismay of many, the owner failed to build upon the success and on July 22 1959, Emilio Azcarraga Milmo, owner of Telesistema Mexicano (Televisa), bought America from Isaac Bessudo³.

It is said in Mexico that the club was founded in 1916, but reborn in 1959, with the vision and values that were set forth by the son of Televisa's founder, Emilio Azcarraga Milmo. The vision he embarked upon was to convert football into a form of entertainment for the masses. Following the acquisition, Azcarraga told his players, 'I do not know much about football, but I do know a lot about business, and this gentlemen, will be a business⁷'.

It was obvious to Emilio Azcarraga that football in Mexico needed an antagonist, in other words, a common bad guy. Emilio Azcarraga knew that his club could not compete with the good guy in the movie (in this case, Chivas). The new owner sought out to be the villain. Soon after, the club started to spend obscene amounts of money in acquiring foreign talents, which offended fans. Emilio Azcarraga hired the Mexican Leagues most successful football executive of that time, Guillermo Cañedo as President and Ignacio Trelles as head coach. It was then when Emilio Azcarraga revolutionized the game in Mexico. He laid down a foundation for the club’s future by investing in scouting, player development, infrastructure, and merchandising⁷. He marketed his team both at the national and international level which allowed the club to enjoy financial growth. Under Azcarraga, the team has won 10 League championships, the first after the 1965-1966 season.

[edit] 1970's Signs of Greatness

In the 1970's, when Mexico's league championship format was changed to a playoff following the regular season (the previous format was akin to most European leagues, where the team with the most points after the end of the regular season is crowned the champion), America achieved more success - winning in the 1970-71 season(America 2 - 0 Toluca), and in the 1975-76 season, defeating Universidad de Guadalajara by a score of 4-0. The success in the 70's was due in large part to players like Enrique Borja, later an executive for the team, and Carlos Reinoso the gifted Chilean playmaker who is arguably the greatest player to wear an America uniform.

[edit] 1980's The Golden Age

Eight more years would come to pass before America won another championship, but the team's fans would be rewarded thanks to the conquest of what has been called by many the greatest moment in the Eagles' history, a 5-3 victory over the team Chivas de Guadalajara at the climax of the 1983-1984 season, cementing the team's third league championship. The '84 championship gave the team new vigor it seemed, and America began to dominate the decade, steamrolling their way to four more titles in the 1980's. (1984-85, when they defeated UNAM Pumas 3-1; Prode 85 beating Tampico Madero 5 to 4, 1987-88 once again over Pumas by a score of 4-2 and ending their decade of dominance by defeating Cruz Azul at the end of the 1988-89 season 5-4)

[edit] 1990's A Decade to Forget

The nineties would be a decade to forget for fans of the yellow clad warriors, with nothing to show for except an Interamericana Cup championship in 1993, and a CONCACAF Cup Championship in 1992. Years came and went with Televisa spending exorbitant amounts of money on both Mexican and South American (and even a few European and African imports) destined to return the club to its former glory which came to pass as nothing more than currency far from well spent. Internationally renowned coaches and executives were also brought to the team, producing no results that added to the team's woes. The only bright spots of the decade were the appearance of new young stars that developed in the club's youth squad, players like Cuauhtémoc Blanco and Germán Villa that would be instrumental to the team's success later on.

[edit] 2000's Return to the Top

The new millennium brought renewed hope for Club America's fans, who would be rewarded quickly, with a CONCACAF Giants' cup in 2001, the first League championship in 13 years in the summer of 2002, and the team's tenth overall League title in 2005. The team, now being run by Azcarraga's grandson, Emilio Azcárraga Jean continues the legacy begun by his grandfather and the foundation he laid which eventually rewarded the club with - aside from the aforementioned 10 League titles- , 3 Cup titles, 3 Super Cup titles, 5 CONCACAF Champions Cup titles, and 2 Interamerican Cup titles.

[edit] Honors

[edit] National

• Mexican Championship:10
  • 1966, 1971, 1976, 1984, 1985, Prode 1985, 1988, 1989, Verano 2002, Clausura 2005
• Cup Titles: 6
  • 1938, 1954, 1955, 1964, 1965, 1974
• Super Cup Titles: 5
  • 1955, 1976, 1988, 1989, 2000

[edit] International

• CONCACAF Champions' Cup: 5
  • 1977, 1987, 1990, 1992, 2006
• CONCACAF Giants Cup:
  • 2001
• Interamerican Cup: 2
  • 1978, 1991

[edit] Other Tournaments

• Copa Independencia: 1967, 1975
• Junta Espanola Covadonga: 1927
• Copa Vizcaya: 1920
• Copa Baltamar: 1922
• Liga Excelsior: 1920
• Copa Presidente Gustavo Diaz Ordaz: 1965
• Copa Revolucion Mexicana: 1981

[edit] América at the Copa Libertadores

Year	Team	Games Played	Wins	Ties	Losses	Eliminated
1998	América	8	2	3	3	Round of 16
2000	América	12	8	1	3	Semifinals
2002	América	12	9	2	1	Semifinals
2004	América	8	4	2	2	Round of 16
2007	América	3	2	0	1	Group Stage

[edit] Stadium

Main article: Estadio Azteca

América play their home games at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. The stadium is shared with Atlante, and was briefly used by Cruz Azul and Necaxa before they moved to the Estadio Azul in 1996 and Estadio Victoria in 2003 respectively. The stadium was designed by Mexican architect Pedro Ramírez Vázquez, and was inaugurated on May 29, 1966, with a match between América and Torino, which América tied 2-2. The Azteca is also the only stadium in history to host two World Cup finals.

[edit] Rivalries

Over the years América has formed fierce rivalries with many teams, this is due in large part not only because of the size and succes of the club, but because of the polarizing perception of the institution.

[edit] El Clásico Joven

América has a long standing rivalry with Cruz Azul, it is considered one of Mexico's classic derbies because of the size of the two clubs and their popularity around Mexico City and the rest of the country. América and Cruz Azul rank second and third all-time in Mexican championships and are tied for the most CONCACAF Champions' Cups.

[edit] El Clásico Mexicano

Main article: El Clásico (Mexico)

The rivalry between América and Chivas is considered the important rivarly in Mexico and one of the most heated rivalries in the world. The derby transcends far beyond just the two corresponding cities, Mexico City and Guadalajara but around the country, different parts of central america, and in the United States(due to Latin immigration). América and Chivas have long been the two most succesful teams in Mexico and currently stand one and two on the all-time first division table, Chivas recently taken the lead winning their elevnth star, while América has ten.

As of 2007 América have the lead winning 70 times, tying 65, and losing 61 times, including the 1-0 victory in the Clausura 2007.

[edit] Other Rivalries

América also has strong rivalries with fellow Mexico City side UNAM, and its "brother" team Necaxa, as the latter is owned by the same conglomerate that owns América.

[edit] Current Roster

No. Position Player 1 GK Francisco Guillermo Ochoa 2 DF Ismael Rodríguez 3 DF José Antonio Castro 4 DF Óscar Rojas 5 DF Duilio Davino 6 DF Diego Alberto Cervantes 7 MF Daniel Ruben Bilos 8 MF Luis Saritama 9 FW Salvador Cabañas 10 FW Cuauhtémoc Blanco 12 GK Alberto Becerra 14 DF Carlos Infante 16 DF Ricardo Rojas 17 MF Ignacio Torres

No. Position Player 18 MF Germán Villa 19 MF Fabián Peña 20 MF Alejandro Argüello 22 DF Alvin Mendoza 23 FW Nelson Cuevas 25 FW Cesar Andres Carignano 28 DF Raúl Alberto Salinas 30 GK Armando Navarrete 52 MF Juan Carlos Mosqueda 54 FW Enrique Esqueda 55 FW Santiago Fernández 57 MF Fernando Julien Freire 59 DF Rodrigo Iñigo

[edit] Reserve/Youth Squad

No. Position Player 25 GK Óscar Antonio Miramontes 39 DF Nestor Mauricio Casillas Ayon 51 MF Juan Carlos Silva Maya 59 FW Abrahm Octaviano 16 DF Leandro Morales

[edit] Squad changes for Clausura 2007 season

In:

• César Andrés Carignano- On Loan From FC Basel (for Copa Libertadores 2007 only)
• Daniel Rubén Bilos - On Loan From AS Saint-Etienne
• Luis Saritama - transferred From UANL Tigres

Out:

• Vicente Matías Vuoso - on loan to Santos Laguna

• Claudio Lopez - transferred to Racing Club

[edit] Notable Players

Claudio López Ataulfo Sanchez Hector Miguel Zelada Daniel Brailovsky Antônio Carlos Santos Francisco Moacyr Santos José Alves "Zague" Dirceu Kléber Boas Djalminha François Omam-Biyik Carlos Reinoso Osvaldo "Pata Bendita" Castro Iván Zamorano Rafael Garza Gutiérrez "Récord" Ignacio de la Garza Ernesto Sota Enrique Ostos Enrique Borja Oswaldo Sanchez Alfredo Tena

Javier Aguirre Carlos Hermosillo Ricardo Pelaez Cristóbal Ortega Hugo Sánchez Amado "Tarzan" Palacios Luis Roberto Alves Cuauhtémoc Blanco Pavel Pardo Horacio Casarín Javier "Chalo" Fragoso Oscar Rojas Germán Villa Octavio Vial Adolfo Ríos Guillermo Ochoa Raúl Vicente Amarilla Nelson Cuevas Salvador Cabañas Kalusha Bwalya Ilie Dumitrescu

[edit] Scoring Champions

• 1958-59 Eduardo González Palmer (25 Goals)
• 1965-66 José Alves "Zague" (20 Goals)
• 1970-71 Enrique Borja (20 Goals)
• 1971-72 Enrique Borja (26 Goals)
• 1972-73 Enrique Borja (24 Goals)
• 1973-74 Oswaldo Castro (26 Goals)
• 1982-83 Norberto Outes (22 Goals)
• Invierno 1998 Cuauhtémoc Blanco (16 Goals)
• Apertura 2005 Kléber (11 Goals)

[edit] Selected Former Managers

• Alfio Basile
• Leo Beenhakker
• Marcelo Bielsa
• Raúl Cárdenas
• Mario Carrillo
• Carlos de los Cobos
• Rafael Garza Gutiérrez
• Manuel Lapuente
• Ricardo Lavolpe
• Carlos Reinoso
• Oscar Ruggeri
• Jorge Solari
• Alfredo Tena

[edit] Former Presidents

1. (1916-1920) Florencio Domínguez Cortina
2. (1920-1930) Guillermo Gómez Arzapalo
3. (1930-1932) Juan de Dios Bojórquez
4. (1933-1933) Carlos Herrera
5. (1933-1934) Antonio Correa
6. (1934-1937) Ernesto Sota
7. (1937-1938) Germán Núñez Cortina
8. (1938-1939) Salvador González de la Vega
9. (1939-1940) Francisco Bautista
10. (1940-1940) Filiberto Zapata
11. (1940-1945) César Martíno
12. (1945-1947) Francisco Bautista
13. (1948-1949) Antonio Hidalgo
14. (1950-1951) Miguel Ramírez Vázquez
15. (1954-1956) Julián Rodríguez Adáme
16. (1956-1959) Isaac Besudo
17. (1959-1961) Darío Pastrana
18. (1961-1981) Guillermo Cañedo de la Bárcena
19. (1981-1996) Emilio Díez Barroso
20. (1996-1997) Pablo Cañedo White
21. (1997-1998) Alejandro Orvañános
22. (1998-1999) Raúl Quintana
23. (1999-2004) Javier Pérez Teuffer
24. (2004-Present) Guillermo Jorge Cañedo White

[edit] Sources/External Links

• Official Team Website
• Team Anthem
• OleOle's LIVE Coverage of Club America at the FIFA Club World Cup 2006
• 1 "Nace un equipo pequeño." www.esmas.com. Redaccion.
• 2 "Inicia la aventura (1917-1942)." www.esmas.com. Redaccion.
• 3 "Epoca profesional (1943-1969)." www.esmas.com. Redaccion.
• 4 "Mas ligas y el campeonato Intercontinental (1970-1981)." www.esmas.com. Redaccion.
• 5 "America campeonisimo (1982-1998)." www.esmas.com. Redaccion.
• 6 "Otra vez Campeones (1999-actual)." www.esmas.com. Redaccion.
• 7 Club America: El vuelo de Aguilas. Televisa Home Entertainment, Clio. DVD. Xenon Picture. 2001

Primera División de México, Apertura 2006 & Clausura 2007 v • d • e
Group 1 Necaxa | Cruz Azul Guadalajara | Querétaro Atlas | Chiapas	Group 2 UAG | Monterrey Veracruz | Pachuca Atlante | San Luis	Group 3 América | Morelia Toluca | UNAM UANL | Santos
League Levels
Primera División de México | Primera División A  | Segunda División | Tercera División
Miscellaneous
List of champions | El Clásico (Regiomontano) | InterLiga | SuperLiga