Puebla F.C.

Club de Fútbol Puebla is a Mexican football club based in the city of Puebla, Mexico, competing in Primera División. The team's white home jersey features its iconic blue sash, which crosses the chest diagonally from the right shoulder to the waist.

Since 1904 the city of Puebla has practiced football.First in 1904 with club Puebla A.C. founded by Englishmen who integrated into the Mexican football league during the amateur era. In 1944 and 1949 Puebla F.C. gained second, third and three fourth-place finishes in league play; in the 1944-45 season they won their first Copa México, thereby paving the road for one of the great football clubs in Mexico. During the 1953-54 season they managed their second Copa México title. Puebla took home their first league title in the 1982-83 season after defeating Guadalajara on penalty kicks. A third Copa México was accomplished after the 1987-88 season, and in the 1989-90 season they won both their fourth Copa México and their second league title after beating Universidad de Guadalajara. This feat (winning both the league and the Copa México championships) earned the team the right to be counted among the exclusive "Campeónísimo" club. In 1991, they defeated Police F.C. from Trinidad and Tobago for their first CONCACAF championship.

The team was relegated to Primera A at the end of the Clausura 2005. The team won the Apertura 2006 tournament in an exciting match against Salamanca. On May 26, 2007, Puebla won back the right to play in Mexico's premier league by defeating Dorados de Sinaloa in a packed Cuauhtémoc Stadium with more than 45,000 fans. Celebrations all around the city of Puebla ensued, reminding of the celebrations in 1983 and 1990 when the team won the league championship. Puebla eluded relegation again in the Clausura 2009, but the team went much further in the tournament than anybody anticipated; managing to reach the semifinal stage of the Liguilla where they performed admirably against the team that would be champion, U.N.A.M., which was able to reach the finals only because of their better position in the tournament standings.

Throughout more than sixty years of professional football, Puebla has counted on notable international players, mainly from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Spain, Uruguay and other locations in Africa and Europe.

History

Early years

The city of Puebla counted with the sport since 1904 when an English Athletic club Puebla A.C. join the Primera Fuerza, the club was founded two years after the first known league was established in Mexico, Puebla along with Reforma AC, C.F. Pachuca, Albinegros de Orizaba, Mexico Cricket Club and British Club were the first teams to play any sort of organized football competition in Mexico. In their first tournament in 1904 the club lost all games and didn't score a goal in the 8 games played. In 1905, the club struggled and managed to score its first and only goal in that tournament, finishing last with no wins, 1 draw and 7 losses, and 20 goals against. For the 1906-1907 season the club finished third with 3 wins, 3 losses and 2 draws for a total of 9 points with 8 goals scored and 6 against. After this season the club folded and the league would go down to 4 clubs, the club would not see action for 8 years until 1915^[1] when the club reformed again this time by the Spaniards living in Puebla. Due to the lack of opponents, having only one with neighboring town San Martín Texmelucan, the club would be forced to go Orizaba, Veracruz to find competition where they participated for a few years In the old Liga Veracruzana de Futbol. The club would have to wait until 1944 when football had been professionalized to once again make its return.

Professional Debut

It all came to be on March 28, 1944, when Puebla was admitted to the Primera División de México, their home ground was Parque El Mirador—the first owners, Joaquín Díaz Loredo and Alfonso Sobero were important textile owners in the 1940s. The first official match took place on Sunday May 7, 1944, at 4 p.m. in Veracruz in the Copa México tournament. Veracruz gave Puebla their first lost in the professional era beating them 5-1. Puebla's first goal was scored by Lupe Velázquez in the 68th minute. Two weeks later at El Mirador the team played a friendly match against Atlante, losing 4-1. On July 4, 1944, Puebla obtained its first victory in El Mirador against Veracruz with a score of 3-4.

On August 20, 1944, Puebla played its first professional league match against Atlas, beating them 5-2. The Argentinean forward scored Eladio VaschettoPuebla's first goal in the professional league era. The first lost in the league was to Real Club España, losing 2-1 in Mexico City. In 24 games played in the 1944-45 league Puebla obtained 14 wins, 2 draws and 8 losses with 53 goals in favor and 30 against. That year Puebla was the league runner-up to Real Club España, but saved the season by winning the Copa México against América in a memorable match wining it 5-3. Ricardo Alvarez was the lead scorer, scoring 4 goals.

1945 Copa Mexico

In 1944 Puebla finished runner up in the league championship and many thought they had been better than the actual champions España. With a good league tournament played they also played the 1944 Copa Mexico in which they showed why they finished second in the league by crowing themselves champions that year. The tournament started when Puebla faced Orizaba beating them 6-0 in both games. Arturo Chávez scored 5 goals in both games and ended as the tournaments lead scorer with 15 goals. In the quarter-finals stage, Puebla faced Atlas de Guadalajara, a club that did not put up much of a fight and ended up losing 4-0. Arturo Chávez scored the 4 goals in that series. At semifinals Puebla faced one of the best clubs in that tournament, Club Deportivo Oro. However, Puebla was playing better and defeated Oro 3-1 to advance to their first final ever.

At the final game on June 25, 1945, Puebla faced one of the most important clubs in Mexico America. Puebla came out in the first minute with the intention of winning the cup. They found themselves up 3-0 in the 26th minute, with 2 goals by Eladio Vaschetto and one from Arturo Chávez. America scored its first goal at the 43rd minute courtesy of Vial. The first half ended 3-1. In the second half, America came out to prove their status as an important club and went on the offense. With America looking for goals, Puebla found open spaces but they could not take advantage. In the 61st minute Manolo Alarcón scored a goal for America, and 3 minutes later Nicoluau scored another goal, and at the 69th minute Scarone scored yet another, reducing the deficit to a single goal. It seemed that America could achieve a historic comeback. But Puebla was a team with a lot of character and knew how to respond to America's 3 goals. In the 71 minute the legendary forward Miguel López scored for Puebla, giving them a comfortable 5-3 lead. Two minutes later Vial scored America's 4th goal bringing back the deficit to one goal. The last goal in the memorable final came in the 78 minute when Lupe Velázquez scored Puebla's 6th goal, which closed that spectacular game.

1953 Copa Mexico

During the 1952-1953^[2] season Don Joaquín Díaz once again was the owner of the club and with “El Gordo”, González Gatica, managed to obtain the club's second Copa Mexico, beating León in the final. That off season, they reinforced the club by signing big name players such as "Chepe" Naranjo, Mota y Caserio. The club also played friendly games with European club FK Austria Wien and also big South American clubs. In the first game Puebla beat Leon 2-0. In the second game Puebla finished them of with a score of 2-1 for an aggregated score of 4-1. This way on May 31, 1953, Puebla was once again the Copa México champion. In the Campeón de Campeones puebla lost to the Tamaulipan club Jaibos Tampico Madero just like they had in 1944. The team's manager (coach) was Spanish Isidro Langara. The 4 goals scored by Puebla were by Fernández, Cubero, Velázquez, and Cubero. The starting line up were González (goalkeeper), Rivas, Torres Ruiz (defender), Cárdenas, Iturbe (midfielder), Lupe Velázquez, Uceda, Del Toro, Fernández, Cubero (forwards).

In 1953 the club managed to obtain its second Copa Mexico title and the last title they would win for almost 30 years. After the 1955-1956 league tournament the club's then-owner Manuel Hidalgo was abandoned by the other owners, and was not able to sustain the club. In 1956 his request to the Mexican federation for the club to take a year hiatus to better their economic situation was discouraged; Hidalgo was told that if the club took time off, they would have to return in the second division. The club folded in 1956 due to the loss of its stadium, the Parque El Mirador, which burned down due to a torch that was thrown into the wooden ramps. The total losses were 300 thousand pesos, which took the club out of action for 8 years.

1960s

After numerous attempts, Manuel Sánchez Gomez, Leonardo Ortiz and Rafael Durá succeeded in reforming the stripe club, and Puebla returned to professional football. On February 19, 1964^[2] The federation allowed the club to take part of the 1964- 1965 second division league tournament. Donato Alonso was coach of that squad and formed it with second division players, amateur Puebla players and veteran 1950s players. The first game was played in the estadio Ignacio Zaragoza against Ciudad Victoria which ended in a 2-2 draw. Roberto Torres y Francisco Escamilla scored for Puebla. The first victory was against Texcoco with a score of 4-1 and the club remained undefeated for the next 15 rounds, until they fell 1-0 to Ciudad Victoria in Ciudad Victoria. Puebla finished 6 in this tournament.

Puebla played 6 years in second division from 1964 to 1970 until a promotional series between Unión de Curtidores, Club Deportivo Nacional and Naucalpan. Puebla won their 3 matches played in Olímpico Universitario. The third and final match of the series was played against Naucalpán with a score of 1-0 that granted Puebla the promotion to first division. Gervasio Quiroz score the only goal in that game. The scores of the three games were 2-2 against Unión de Curtidores, 1–0 against Naucalpan, and 1–0 against Club Deportivo Nacional.

1970s

the first game played in first division after almost 20 years was against Club América, coach by Francisco González Gatica puebla felt 2-0 in the Estadio Azteca. The first draw was a 1-1 against pumas unam in c.u. Their first victory was against Cruz Azul in Estadio Cuauhtémoc with a score of 2-0. edIn this tournament puebla obtain 11 victories, 10 draws and loss 13 finishing with 43 points ocuping the 11 position of 18 in the leagues competition. With 2 games left puebla was in serious trouble of being regulated so the club replace coach González Gatica for the Spanier Ángel Zubieta which he managed to win the last 2 games and maintain the category.

In the 1971/72^[3] tournament the club finished 7 in the standings but failed to classify for the playoffs because Monterrey y Guadalajara finished with the same points but had a greater goal differential.

In the 1972/73 tournament the club started with a strong style of playing that had them in second place in the standings with 6 matches left in the tournament. But Puebla lost 5 of the last 6 games, finishing 10th overall and failed to qualify once again.

In the 1973/74 tournament Puebla finally managed to qualify for the quarterfinals, after finishing in 4th place overall with 13 victories, 14 draws and only 7 losses. In the quarters they faced Cruz Azul. The away game ended in a 1-1 draw, but in the second match Cruz Azul beat Puebla with a score of 6-1, which eliminated them. Cruz Azul went on to win the final against Atlético Español.

In the 1975/76 tournament had a string of 11 games without a victory and the Puebla players received 25 red cards, Puebla was in danger of being relegated or forced to play a relegation match. Puebla avoided that scenario by finishing 18th overall and leaving that scenario to Atlante and Potosi who was relegation.

In the 1977/78 tournament Puebla once against had a terrible time and lost 20 games which once again put them in danger of relegation. But in the last round they managed to draw with Tigres in Monterrey and forced Atlas and Unión de Curtidores to contest relegation, with Unión de Curtidores who at the end was regulated to the second division. Silvio Fogel was the clubs star player who scored 21 goals and help the club forget its relegation problems. Puebla finished 7th overall but failed to qualify for the playoffs, in the last round the club tied with América and combined with a win by Toluca, they missed the playoffs.

In the 1979/80 tournament the club finished 13 overall with 11 victories and 16 losses. So came to an end a decade where the club played mostly to avoid being relegated.

1980s

In the 1980/81 tournament the club finished 12 overall and obtained 37 points by means of 12 victories, 13 draws and 13 losses. The club scored 37 goals that tournament. In this tournament the Brazilian player Muricy Ramalho joined the club and scored 7 goals, becoming a player that would go down in history with the club. In this tournament, the club used the city as its badge. Some of the notable players from that era were Moy Camacho, Hugo Fernandez, Luis Enrique Fernandez, Juan Alvarado, Muricy Ramalho, and Silvio Fogel.

In the 1981/82 tournament Puebla was placed in group 1, the club went on to finish 3^[4] th with 41 points in 38 games played in which the club obtain 15 victories,11 draws and 12 losses. The club scored 58 goals, but with all this points gained the club still failed to qualify, finishing 10th in the league. Players that made up this squad were Moíses Camacho, Jesús Llangostera, Jesús Rico, Arturo Alvarez, Héctor Rosete, Miguel Angel Viveros, Fco. Thomsom, J. Benito Cucula, Carlos Gómez, Ignacio Ramirez (1 Goal), Juan Carlos Contreras, Jorge Saenz, Angel Ramos (2 goals), José Martínez Pirri (9 goals), Gustavo Béltran (5 goals), Juan

Manuel Rangel, Eusebio Martínez, Juan Manuel Asensi 11 goals,Juan Manuel Borbolla 7 goals,C. S. Idigoras 12 goals,Juan Alvarado 1 goal, Muricy Ramalho 11 goals and coached by Leonel Urbina.

1982 - 1983 Title

At the start of the 1982 league championship, the few who believed Puebla could win included new coach Manuel Lapuente. Lapuente had played for Puebla for over five years and now had the chance to manage the club. He qualified the club with a record of 15 victories, 15 draws, and 8 defeats, for a total of 45 points with 53 goals for and 39 against. In the playoff they faced three clubs from Jalisco.^[5]

Their first opponent was U.A.G. in the quarterfinals. In the first match Puebla was defeated 2-1 in a game played at Guadalajara. In the second game Puebla defeated U.A.G 5-1 for an aggregated score of 6-3. In the semifinals, they faced Universidad de Guadalajara. Puebla lost the first match played in Estadio Jalisco 1-0. In the second match Puebla was able to overcome the deficit and won 4-2 and advance with an aggregated score of 4-3. In the final Puebla benefited after a fight in semifinals between América and Guadalajara, leaving Guadalajara with a number of players suspended. In the first match Guadalajara defeated Puebla 2-1 in the Estadio Jalisco. In the second game played in a packed Estadio Cuauhtémoc, a goal scored by Alberto Orozco sent the game into overtime and then to a penalty shootout. Luis Enrique Fernández scored the final penalty goal which gave Puebla its first league title in the professional era. The line up in that final game included Toño de la Torre, Sambueza, Orozco, Luis Enrique Fernandez, Pedro Soto, Raul Arias, Muricy, Angel Ramos, Arturo Alvarez, Estupiñan, Chaplin Ceballos.

1988 Copa Mexico

On May 26, 1988 Emilio Maurer acquired the club and his first action was to substitute coach Luis Enrique Fernández by Hugo Fernández. Hugo led the team to the 1988 league quarterfinals but was eliminated by America with a score of 6-2. For the 1988 Copa Mexico, Puebla reinforced by signing Arturo Castañon, Wana Contreras, the Chilean defender Oscar Rojas and the forward Jorge Aravena. In the quarterfinals Puebla defeated Toluca in the Estadio Cuauhtémoc before more than 40 thousand fans in a night game that had not being played in Puebla for more than 3 years. In semifinals, Puebla defeated Monterrey to advance to their fifth Copa Mexico final, having won 2 and lost 2. In the final Puebla faced Cruz Azul. The first match ended with a 1-1 draw. Scoring for Puebla was the midfielder Marcelino Bernal, while Mojica scored the Cruz Azul goal. The second match ended with a 0-0 draw and Puebla was awarded the cup for the goal scored as visitant in the first match played in the Estadio Azul. Puebla starting line up were Aguilar (goalkeeper), Torres, Gamal, Roberto Ruiz Esparza, Amador (Rosete) (defender), Marcelino Bernal, Cosío, Bartolotta (midfielders), Paúl Moreno, Ramos (Omar Mendiburu), Gustavo Moscoso (forwards).

Campeonismo 1989-90

In 1989 Lapuente led the club to a third place finishing with 46 points by means of 17 victories, 12 draws and 9 losses, with 57 goals in favor and 42 against. In quarterfinals Puebla faced U.A.T.. The first game was won by U.A.T. by 3-1, while the second game was won by Puebla 3-1. In this way, the series ended even 4-4. However, Puebla advanced to quarterfinals because they had a better league standing than U.A.T. In semifinals Puebla faced U.N.A.M.. The first match finished tied 4-4. The second match was won by Puebla 4-2 in the Estadio Olímpico Universitario. In the final, Puebla faceed Universidad de Guadalajara. In the first match, Puebla defeated U. de Guadalajara 2-1 with goals by Jorge

Aravena and Carlos Poblete, Octavio Mora scored U. de Guadalajara only goal. In the second game, played in Estadio Cuauhtémoc with an attendance of over 60,000 supporters, the stadium was full to over its capacity, stairs and hallways even in the roof people witness that game that set a record in attendance in a professional game ever played in the city of Puebla, Puebla defeated U. de Guadalajara 4-3 with goals by Javier "Chicharo" Hernández, two goals from Jorge Aravena and Carlos Poblete. The visiting club goaols were scored by Daniel Guzmán, Jorge Daválos and an own goal by Roberto Ruiz Esparza.^[6]

Also in the 1989-1990 league Puebla defeated Universidad de Guadalajara in the finales obtaining their second league title. On April 11, 1990 Puebla obtained the Copa Mexico^[7] which would make them the 4th campeonisimo in history. Only 3 others clubs had won the league and the cup the same year: Club León in 1949, Guadalajara in 1963, and Cruz Azul in 1970. In that final Puebla faced U.A.N.L.. The first match was played in Monterrey in the Estadio Universitario and the game ended there with a score of 2-0 in Tigres favor. Goals were scored by Almirón and Gama. The second game was played in Puebla in a packed Estadio Cuauhtémoc. That game ended 4-1 in favor of Puebla. Puebla's goals were score by Edgardo Fuentes, Carlos Poblete, Jorge Aravena and Marcelino Bernal. Almirón scored U.A.N.L. only goal that day. Ppuebla line up were Aguilar (goalkeeper), Torres, Gamal, Ruiz Esparza, Amador (Rosete) (defenders), Bernal, Cosío, Bartolotta (midfielders), Paúl Moreno, Ramos (Mendiburu), Moscoso (forwards).The 1989-1990 squad is remembered as the best squad ever to wear Puebla FC slash and is remember by the sopports and media as the Campeonisimo. The starting line up included Pablo Larios as goalkeeper, Arturo Álvarez, Eduardo Fuentes, Roberto Ruiz Esparza, and Arturo "Mango" Orozco as defenders; Marcelino Bernal, José Manuel de la Torre, Jorge Aravena y Javier "Chícharo" Hernández as midfielders, and Carlos Poblete, along side with Julio Cesar Romero "Romerito as forwards With Manuel Lapuente as head coauch. pueblas sop porters also remember Emilio Maurer owner at that time as the best clubs president to had being in charge of the club.

1990 Copa Mexico

In the 1989-1990 league Puebla defeated Universidad de Guadalajara in the finales obtaining their second league title. On April 11, 1990 Puebla obtained the Copa Mexico^[7] which would make them the 4th campeonisimo in history. Only 3 others clubs had won the league and the cup the same year: Club León in 1949, Guadalajara in 1963, and Cruz Azul in 1970. In that final Puebla faced U.A.N.L.. The first match was played in Monterrey in the Estadio Universitario and the game ended there with a score of 2-0 in Tigres favor. Goals were scored by Almirón and Gama. The second game was played in Puebla in a packed Estadio Cuauhtémoc. That game ended 4-1 in favor of Puebla. Puebla's goals were score by Edgardo Fuentes, Carlos Poblete, Jorge Aravena and Marcelino Bernal. Almirón scored U.A.N.L. only goal that day. Ppuebla line up were Aguilar (goalkeeper), Torres, Gamal, Ruiz Esparza, Amador (Rosete) (defenders), Bernal, Cosío, Bartolotta (midfielders), Paúl Moreno, Ramos (Mendiburu), Moscoso (forwards).

The 1989-1990 squad is remembered as the best squad ever to wear Puebla FC slash and is remember by the sopports and media as the Campeonisimo. The starting line up included Pablo Larios as goalkeeper, Arturo Álvarez, Eduardo Fuentes, Roberto Ruiz Esparza, and Arturo "Mango" Orozco as defenders; Marcelino Bernal, José Manuel de la Torre, Jorge Aravena y Javier "Chícharo" Hernández as midfielders, and Carlos Poblete, along side with Julio Cesar Romero "Romerito as forwards With Manuel Lapuente as head coauch. pueblas sop porters also remember Emilio Maurer owner at that time as the best clubs president to had being in charge of the club.

Difficult times

In the 1991–1992 championship, Puebla managed to reach their fourth final in its history. Puebla lost that final against Leon in overtime with a score of 2-0.

The 1992–1993^[8] championship marked the start of a difficult period in the club. The tournament started with problems with the Mexican Federation. The owner, Emilio Maurer Espinoza, was accused of irregularities in his administration and was stripped of the club and expelled from the league. That year Puebla finish 4th in group 2 with 43 points and didn't qualify.

In the 1993-1994^[8] championship. Puebla finished third in group one with 34 points.

In the 1994-1995 championship Puebla, after an irregular tournament, finishing in 3^[8] th in group 3 with 40 points and managed to qualify to a knockout series against Veracruz. Puebla defeated Veracruz 1-0, but they were eliminated in quarterfinals by América with an overall score of 4-2.

In the 1995-1996 championship Puebla changed owners and the brothers Abed came to power. The new owners had no respect for the clubs history or tradition changing the club colors. That year was one of clubs worst tournaments in Puebla's history and they finished in last place with 28 points by means of 6 victories, 10 draws, and 18 losses with 29 goals for and 54 against.

In 1997 Puebla welcomed the short tournament era in white an orange home kit, impulsed by the brothers Abed showing little interest in the clubs tradition. Nonetheless, that tournament was a success and qualified to the quarterfinals after getting 31 points in group 2. In quarterfinals Puebla eliminated Toluca by a score of 2-1. In semifinals, however, Pueblas was eliminated by Necaxa with an aggregated score of 7-2. In this tournament the Spanish Carlos Muñoz got the first scoring title in Puebla's history with 15 goals scored in 17 games. Carlos also holds the record of most goals scored in one game in the history of the short tournaments, scoring 4 goals against Tecos in 1996 and 4 goals against Morelia in 1998.

After three years as owners of the club the brothers Abed dismantled the club and sold it to Francisco Bernad Cid who along with Francisco Regordosa made up the directors board. They brought back the traditional crest and colors. In that position the coach Raúl Cárdenas didn't ask for any players from the draft and brought five players from Yugoslavia which were a disappointment. This tournament was the worst in the clubs history, with only 9 points in 2 victories, 3 draws, and 12 losses, with 13 goals in favor and 41 against. The club's lead scorer was Aleksandar Janjic with a couple of goals.

In the Summer of 1999^[9] the story wasn't different from the last years. Alfredo Tena took over as coach and brought some reinforcements as Martín Ubaldi, François Omam Biyik, Rubén Ruiz Díaz, and Miguel Pardeza. Puebla didn't improve and Tena was replace by José Mari Bakero as coach. The team played worse and in the last round they tied against Monterrey and were relegated to the second division for the second time since 1964 when the club was formed. The numbers were 3 victories, 4 ties and 10 losses with 15 goals for and 30 against for a total of 13 points.

Unión de Curtidores purchase

When everyone thought that Puebla would play in second division, during the league's draft it was announced the sell of León by Valente Aguirre to Francisco Bernat, who on June 21 announced that León was going to convert into Puebla F.C. Valente Aguirre said that there was no way Leon was moving out of Guanajuato. In response, Francisco Bernat said if we bought the club was to move it to Puebla, we're from Puebla and its our duty to our fans to have a club in first division... now, if they want the club to remain in Leon they'll have to pay us the 9 millions that we paid. That situation gave way to an uproar from the supporters of Leon who didn't want to the their disappearing. On June 23^[10] it was announced that Puebla would remain in first division, also that Leon would remain in Leon by purchasing Unión de Curtidores, the other team based in Leon. Only the players changed team, Puebla took the players from Leon, and Leon took the players from Curtidores. The club which had being relegated would become BUAP.

21st century

Puebla obtained only 20 points in the Winter 1999 tournament and José Mari Bakero was replaced by Mario Carrillo as coach. In the Summer of 2000 Miguel Mejia Barón took over as head coach and the club qualified for quarter finals, after beating Atlas 5–1, where they lost 9–0 on aggregate to Toluca. They again reached the quarter finals the following season where they beat Tigres U.A.N.L. 5-3. In the semifinal against Santos Laguna Puebla won a dramatic first leg 5–4. The second leg finished 2–1 to Santos, with Puebla being knocked out due too their inferior league standing.

In 2004 with 115 points in 110 matches in over 3 years the club's percentage was 1.0454. Having finished bottom of the division Puebla were relegated for only the second time.^[11] In the Primera A league tournament Puebla started with a new board of directors, and Emilio Maurer named Jorge Aravena as head coach. Puebla finished the season third, with 33 points, and faced Chivas Coras in the end of season tournament. After defeating Chivas Coros they drew with Santos Laguna, but advanced thanks to a superior league finish. In the final Puebla met Cruz Azul Oaxaca, who had finished top of the table. After drawing the first match 1–1, Puebla won the second leg, in Oaxaca, 1– giving them the 2005 Primera A title. Jorge Aravena resigned as head coach, and was succeeded by Paul Moreno.

At the start of the clausura 2006 ones again Puebla fell victim to poor administration errors first by leading go of Eudalio Arriaga and bringing Leandro Alvez and Carlos María Morales and twice changing coach provocative the club to fall in last place with 14 points. When they played the promotion match they brought in Cesar Luis Menotti as head coach who took the club to Argentina for a short pre season action and later they would name Cesar Luis Menotti ass coach. With all this going on when they day came to face Querétaro the club was not at 100% and fell in the first match 1-2 in the Estadio Cuauhtémoc and 3-0 in the Estadio La Corregidora.

At the star of the 2006 apertura, once aging they had built a plan in order for the clubs promotion to the first division. The owners started of first by naming José Luis Sánchez Solá who was not known and by some was not accepted and criticized harshly. José Luis Sánchez Solá had previously work with the clubs inferior division with players such as Juan Carlos García, Sergio Rosas, Sergio Pérez Rodrigo Salinas, Luis Miguel Noriega and the goalkeeper Jorge Villalpando who he brought up to the first team and were crucial players that year. He also brought in veteran player Álvaro González who went on to win to scoring titles in 2006 and 2007, he also brought in the unknown at the time, an amateur player Jorge Damián el ruso Zamogilny who quickly became a fan favorite. In the 3.^[12] th rund of the tournoment the club defieded Tampico Madero 2-0 and snapped a 15 windless strike. The club qualified to the playoffs after finishing first in the first group with 33 points. In the playoff they faced Coatzacoalcos beating them 5-3.In semifinales they faced Cruz Azul Hidalgo which they ended up drawing a 2-2 tie which Puebla would advance for better position in the tournament. In the finale puebla would face Salamanca who was the leader in the tournament that year. In the first match would end up in a 1-1 drawe played in the Estadio Cuauhtémoc with a little over 40,000 Puebla supporters. In the second game the clubs would once againd tie now with a score of 2-2. That finale would be decided in a penelty shoot out which puebla would win after Jorge Zamogilny scored the fifth goald and Adrián Dominguez miss Salamanca fifth goal

In the clasura 2007^[13] the club had a better tournament that the previous finishing 1st place in group one with 36 points and once again Álvaro González winning the goal scoring title with 15. In quarterfinals they would face Pumas Morelos winning that series with a score of 4-3

advancing and facing Club León in semifinals. The first match was played in the Nou Camp in Guantanamo, with a score of 2-0 with Leon taking home advantage. The second match was played in Puebla in the Estadio Cuauhtémoc with over 45,000 puebla supporters, that gmae endad in a 3-3 in match that is still talk about today and that some speculate has started a riverbed between this to clubs. Puebla waited for the champion of the clausura 2007 that would be disputed by Club León and Dorados de Sinaloa. Dorados would be that champion 4-5 and so face Puebla in a promotional match to determent the club that would poe promoted to the first division. The first match was played in the Estadio Carlos González in Sinaloa, the game would fisnih in a 1-1 draw scoring for Puebla was the lead scoring champion Álvaro González and Carlos Casartelli for Dorados. The second game was played on Sunday May 26, 2007 in a pack Estadio Cuauhtémoc with oiver 50'000 fans which the club later would be sited for being over capacity.^[14] Puebla defeated Dorados with a score of 3-2, Álvaro González scored 2 goals in the '8 and in the'45 Hugo Ruiz scored the second in the '26. Scoring for Dorados were Mario Padilla and Lucas Silva. The promotion had finally come after 2 years of first division absence. Players

that took part of this achievement in 2007 were Orlando Rincón, Sergio Pérez, Luis Miguel Noriega, Sergio Rosas, Jorge Villalpando, Álvaro González, Jorge Damián el ruso Zamogilny and the captain Joaquín Velázquez.

In the 2007 apaertura^[13] tournoment the club hosted club America in the first round after 2 years of absence. The club finished with 17 point by means of 4 wins,5 draws and lost 8.The squad was mostly formed with player who obtain the promotion and was poorly reinforce with poor renforcement such asplayers Mateo Figoli and juan Quiroga. The starting line up were Lupe "La Pantera Rosa", Walter Vílchez, "El Ruso Zalmogilny",Quiroga, Adrian Sánchez, "El Bola", Velázquez, Noriega, Hugo Ruíz, Orlando Rincón, Mateo Figoli.

At the end off the apertura 2007 puebla fc was once again involve in scandal when a Mexican newspaper company stated that the club had being sold to a Brazilian businessman Aurelio Almeida owner of the Brazilian club Real Brazil. A day after this came to surface owner Francisco Bernat held a conference were he stayted that the club had not being sold, claiming that his signature had being forge. After weeks of speculations it was on November 21 when it was decided that the contarc and signatures were not valid.

In the 2008 Clausura^[15] the club made a complete reconstruction with 12 new players including Gilberto Mora, Melvin Brown, Felipe Ayala, Javier Cámpora and Nicolas Olivera. It would seem that the club would not have any problem avoiding relegation but at mid tournament the club had fallen to the bottom, so manager José Luis Sánchez Solà "El Chelis" was fired. This stirred up problems with the fans and the players, leading to the board of directors reversing the decision. With the manager back the club, they beat their direct opponent in relegation Tiburones Rojos in Veracruz. In the 16th round the club officially avoided regulation after Veracruz had lost to Pumas Unam. In the last game played in Puebla the club faced Atlante and drew 2-2, which kept them out of the playoff that year.

In the 2008 Apertura^[16] the club managed 15 points by means of 2 wins, 9 draws and 6 losses. Mario Carillo took over as coach after José Luis Sánchez Solá was let go. In mid tournament Mario Carillo separated long time club players Álvaro Fabián González and Joaquín Velázquez from the club, with the excuse of not attending a psychic reading by his personal psychic Mama Tona. At the end of the tournoment both players were released and weeks later Mario Carillo was replace once again by José Luis Sánchez Solá.

In the clausura 2009^[17] Puebla started out the off season by signing veteran players Daniel Osorno and Duilio Davino along with foreign players Ramón Núñez and Alejandro Acosta. The club started off the season by first falling 4-0 to Monterrey in monterrey which concerned the fans and the owners. However, the players quickly adapted to their new teammates and went on to lose only one match in there next 10 matches. They finished the tournament with 26 points by means of 7 wins 6 draws 6 losses.The club qualified to the quarterfinals for the first time since 2001 and faced Monterrey in their first match. Having Monterrey beat 4-0 in the first game off the tournament no one gave Puebla a chance but in the first match Puebla surprised everyone by wining 3-1^[18] goals by Gerardo Galindo 4' (own goal), Alejandro Acosta in the 6' and Sergio Pérez in the 56', Humberto Suazo scored Monterrey's only goal in the 48'. In the second game held in the Estadio Tecnológico in Monterrey the clubs drew a 2-2 draw with a final score of 5-3 advancing Puebla to face Pumas in The semi finales.In the first game played in a jam pack Estadio Cuauhtémoc in Puebla, Puebla fell 2-1 in a last minute goal scored by Marco Antonio Palacios.In the second game played in the Estadio Olímpico Universitario Puebla came out strong scoring the 2 goals that would advance them to the finales but in the minute 89' Darío Verón scored for Pumas.The gamee ended in a 2-1^[19] victory for Puebla but the final score was a 3-3 draw which advance Pumas to finales were they would eventually defeated C.F. Pachuca.

At the end of the tournament having finished 5th overall along with Monterrey both clubs qualified to the 2009 Copa Sudamericana.Short after the Mexican federation protest against the CONMEBOL after clubs C.D. Guadalajara and San Luis F.C. were being discriminated and about to be disqualified from the Copa Libertadores after the Swine flew had broken out in Mexico, claiming they were a health hazard to the rest of the clubs,some clubs even refuse to play their games in Mexico.With this problem at hand the federation decide to pull out of all CONMEBOL tournament which were the Copa Libertadores, Copa Sudamericana and the Copa America which Mexico had been a part of since the early 1990s.After both sides came to an agreement Mexico decided to return to the competition but this time the CONCACAF decided not to allow Mexico to take part of the Copa Sudamericana claiming that the Mexicans clubs should focus more in the CONCACAF Champions League which was its own domestic tournament.^[20]

In the Apertura 2009^[21] the club began the tournoment by singing players Jared Borgeti, Nicolás Martínez, Nicolás Vigneri, Carlos Ruíz Reyes and the ruturn of Joaquín Velázquez and Nicolás Olivera who had beein on a loan to Tiburones Rojos de Veracruz.The club quickly adapted with the new players and did not see a lost till the 10th round,a controveresial game were puebla lost against monterrey due to bad calls and a disallowed goal that was proven to be legit.The club once again finished with 26 points by means of 6 wins 9 draws and 4 losses which qualified them to the quarterfinals.Cruz Azul was the opponent in that series and the first match was held in puebla where the game ended in a 4-4 draw with Puebla scoring 4 goals in the first have and Cruz Azul scoring 2 polemic goals which determine to be crucial in the up come of the series.The second match was held in the Estadio Azul, the game ended in a 3-2 victory for Cruz Azul were once again controversy accrued when cruz azul scored its first goal that was a clear offside,Cruz Azul advance and eventually made it to the final which they lost to Monterrey.And so it came to and end with Puebla having qualified to 2 consecutive playoff not since the 1991-1992 tournament.

At the start of the 2010 year Puebla along with Club America, Monterrey, Jaguares de Chiapas, Estudiantes Tecos, Club Santos Laguna, Tigres de la UANL and Atlante F.C. played the 2010 InterLiga.Puebla finished first in group b with 2 wins no draws and 1 loss,scored 6 goals and allowed 3 for a total of 6 points. The club qualified for the final in which they faced group A second place which was Estudiantes Tecos.That match took place on January 13, 2010 played in front of 27,000 in The Home Depot Center. Puebla's Alejandro Acosta scored the first goal in the fourth minute of play followed by Nicolás Olivera goal in the 47'.In the second half Estudiantes Tecos scored 3 consecutive goals and so qualifying to the 2010 Copa Libertadores.

In the Cluasura 2010^[22] the club Started of the preseason by singing players Marcelo Palau, Herculez Gomez and Alexandro Álvarez also bringing back players Álvaro Fabián González, Hiber Ruíz and Marco Capetillo who had not played since 2007.The club started the tournament bu losing 1-0 to Tigres de la UANL at home. The club won its sound game 3-2 against Estudiantes Tecos on the road. The club would not fair to good having the 2nd worst defense in the league but tied third for the best offense.finishing 13 overall with a record of 5 wins 4 draws losing 8, a scoring 28 goals allowing 31 for a total of 19 points. Herculez Gomez led the club as well as the league in goals scored with ten. That tally earned him the goal scoring title in a tie with Javier Hernández Balcázar. However, Herculez Gomez had scored his 10 goals in fewer minutes played than the other two, scoring 6 of his goals coming in as a substitute.

Badge

The first badge worn by the club did not portrait the clubs main colors blue and white nor the slash that runs from the left shoulder to the right waist, instead the club used the city's cost of arms. Which has the image of Puebla Cathedral surrounded by angels.With this badge the clubs obtain its first titles the Copa Mexico in 1945 and in 1953.The club used this logo from 1944- 71.In the mid 1970s the club changed its badge for the first, making the badge more detail adding color and for the first time adding the traditional sash. The club used this badge from 1974- 1980.In 1981 the club came out with a commemorative badge celebrating the 450 year of the city's foundation. In there 1982 championship year the club wore a simple badge which had a blue Football (ball) with the clubs name at the top and the country's name at the bottom, that was the only year the club would wear that badge.In 1983 the club wore the now traditional badge which has the clubs name with a sash running from left to right inside a blue shield designed.The club used this badge design from 1983-1994 adding a stars to represent the clubs leagues titles in 1982 and their second in 1990.In 1995 after the clubs change in ownership the new owners decide to change the clubs badge to a square design with a sash running from left to right, the top feature the clubs name at the time La Franja (The Sash) at the bottom feature a Football (ball).In the 1996 tournament the new owners The brothers Abed this time changed the clubs colors to orange and white,keeping the badge design but changing the coleres from blue and white to orange and blue.In 1998 after the owner ship of the club change once more this time bought by Francisco Bernat, he decides to bring back the clubs colors as well as the badge worn in the 80s. Under the ownership of Francisco Bernat from 1998to the present day the clubs has worn various commemorative badges celebrating achievement and anniversaries the club has had.

Kit evolution and rare kits

• Home kit: White shirt with a blue sash, blue shorts and white socks.
• Away kit: Blue shirt with a white sash, blue shorts and socks.
• Brand: Kappa (2010-).
• previous brands: Adidas (1982–91), Pony (1991–95), Garcís (1995–96), Joma (1996–99), Atletica (1999-10).

The kit represents the state and the city of Puebla, whose colors are blue and white. The first home kit used by the club was white with the blue sash crossing the chest from left to right. Through the years Puebla has had numerous colors, but they have always used the sash.

First kit evolution

Rivalries

Puebla has had a long standing rivalry with Veracruz. This rivalry dates back to the amateur era from the early 1930s, before both clubs had been admitted into the professional division in 1944.

In all Puebla and Veracruz have played 68 official matches including league and Copa Mexico. Puebla has the best record with 30 wins 15 draws and 23 losses with 108 goals scored and has allowed 97. Jorge Comas has the most goals scored in this derby with 8 followed by Puebla's Silvio Fogel with 7.

Records & Statistics

All time statistics from all tournaments and league divisions the club has taking part of in the Mexican Football Federation and the CONCACAF since 1944 to the present time .

Season to season

• Has Played 6 2nd Division Tournaments last in 1969.
• Has Played 4 Primera A Tournaments last in 2007.
• Has Played 65 Mexican Primera División Tournaments last in 2011.

All time top goalscorers

Since 1950s, when Ricardo Alvarez scored his 86th and last goal with the club, no one else has accomplished this feat. It was on May 21, 1959 when Alvarez scored his last goals with Puebla before leaving the club to join Veracruz. Ricardo Alvarez left a record of 86 goals in 125 games through a career that spanned 5 years. Half a century later, the name of "La Changa" Alvarez is still the best goal scorer ever in the history of Puebla F.C. in first division. Even with the clubs constancy in first division, playing a total of 54 championships, no other player has reached Alvarez's number of goals scored and only one player has obtained the league goal scoring title in 1996.

It was the Spanish Carlos Muñoz who gave Puebla F.C. their only one goal scoring title in 1996 with 15 goals. Thanks to 4 good tournaments, Carlos Muñoz placed himself in the list of the best goal scorers in the club's history but still far from the 86 scored by Ricardo Alvarez. Two players were close to beat Alvarez's record: Silvio Fogel in The 1970s and Carlos Poblete in the 1980s. Silvio Fogel scored 84 goals and now is the scoring runner-up in Puebla's history. Carlos Poblete scored 83 and now is third place in the all time scoring list. Carlos Poblete is at the top of the list in goals scored in playoffs with 15 goals scored. Carlos Poblete and Silvio scored over 100 goals each one, but this was done playing with different clubs. And Ricardo Alvarez did the same scoring 113 goals in his career playing for Puebla F.C., Moctezuma, and Veracruz.

Current Squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

Clausura 2012 Movements

• Updated on December 13, 2011.^[23]

Puebla FC Reserves

Puebla FC Reserves which are made up of the uner 17 and under 20 squads.

Honors

• Primera División de México: 2

1982-83, 1989–90

Runner-up (3): 1944-45,1953-54 , 1991–92

• Campeonato de Ascenso: 2

1970, 2007

Runner-up (1): 2005-06

• Primera División A: 2

Apertura 2005, Apertura 2006

• Copa México: 4

1944-45, 1952-53, 1987-88, 1989-90

Runner-up (2): 1951-52, 1971–72

• Campeonisimo: 1

1990

• Campeón de Campeones (1):

Runner-up (3 )1945, 1953 y 1988

International

• CONCACAF Champions League: 1

1991

• Copa Interamericana: 0

Runner-up (1): 1992

Friendly

• Copa Independencia: 1

2006

• Copa Heroica Puebla: 1

2008

• Copa Amistad: 1

2009

• Trofeo Ciudad de Marbella: 0

Runner-up (1): 1981^[24]

Notable players

Footnotes

External links

• Official Website
• Puebla F.C. at Soccerway