Millonarios F.C.

Millonarios

Full name	Azul y Blanco Millonarios Fútbol Club S.A.
Nickname(s)	Millos Embajadores (The Ambassadors) El Azul (The Blue) Albiazules (The White-Blues) El Ballet Azul (The Blue Ballet)
Founded	18 June 1946; 75 years ago (1946-06-18)
Ground	Estadio El Campín Bogotá, Colombia
Capacity	36,343[1]
Owner	Amber Capital (85.48%) 200 minor shareholders (14.52%)
Chairman	Enrique Camacho Matamoros
Manager	Alberto Gamero
League	Categoría Primera A
2021–I	3rd, runners-up
Website	Club website
Home colours Away colours

Millonarios Fútbol Club is a professional Colombian football team based in Bogotá, that currently plays in the Categoría Primera A. They play their home games at the El Campín stadium.

Millonarios, was initially created in 1937 by students from the Colegio Mayor de San Bartolomé. After the team initially was unsure about which name it would want to use, Unión and Juventud were originally favoured, it got under the influence of the city administration of Bogotá and operated as Club Municipal de Deportes. Millonarios was formally founded on June 18, 1946, thanks to the efforts of Alfonso Senior Quevedo, who became the first chairman.

Millonarios has won the Colombian league 15 times. They are also the third Colombian team to achieve a major international title, the Copa Merconorte in 2001. Since the beginning of the Colombian professional football league, Millonarios has won many domestic tournaments, the last one in 2017.

Millonarios is also one of only three teams that have played every first division tournament in the country, along with their traditional rivals Santa Fe and Atlético Nacional.^[2]

History[]

The Ballet Azul[]

Millonarios greatly benefited from a major players' strike in the Argentinian league in 1948, which caused a great diaspora of players towards Colombia. The most successful period for the club was during the early 1950s due to the notable Argentinean presence. During this period with the squad that was known as The Blue Ballet, that featured great players such as Alfredo di Stefano, Adolfo Pedernera, Néstor Rossi, Julio Cozzi, , Hugo Reyes, and other figures in Argentina, mainly from River Plate. Thanks to the great football that showed these players on the field, Millonarios was named by several media outlets in South America and Europe, as the best team in the world in the early 1950s.

In 1951, Colombia was suspended by FIFA due to the recruitment of international players without a pass; the teams were forced to return all expatriate players that had participated in the tournament through irregular means. This edict marked the departure of di Stefano in February 1953, receiving bids from Barcelona and Real Madrid, who came to win the bid for the player.^[3] The Colombian national team was also banned from the 1954 FIFA World Cup for the same reason.

Small Club World Cup[]

In 1952, a group of Venezuelan sports entrepreneurs created the Small Club World Cup, a friendly competition that brought together leading European and South American teams. Millonarios was invited to participate in the 1952 and 1953 editions. In its first appearance, the team finished with seven points, behind Real Madrid (double tie 1–1) and Brazilian Botafogo (4–4 tie and defeat 0–2); the tournament was played in a two-round scheme, and involved host La Salle of Venezuela (double win 4–1 and 5–1).

In its participation in 1953, the team was crowned undefeated champion with 11 points, above River Plate of Argentina (5–1 win and 1–1 tie), Rapid Wien of Austria (double win 2–1 and 4–0) and Spanish Espanyol of Barcelona (double win 6–0 and 4–0). This friendly tournament is considered by some to be a predecessor of the Intercontinental Cup, now known as FIFA Club World Cup, though not its equivalent.

2000s[]

Millonarios had further improvement when former Manchester City assistant manager Juan Carlos Osorio was appointed as the new Millonarios' Manager, which led the club to 3rd position in the League Stage of the Mustang Cup, and 5th in the addition of all the year's performance, taking the club once again into the Copa Sudamericana, while the financial situation of the team also had a notable recovery. In July 2007, Osorio left Millonarios to manage Major League Soccer side Chicago Fire, and he was replaced with Martín Lasarte; after a brief, but very unsuccessful period with Lasarte, Millonarios then hired Argentinian Mario Vanemerak as their new manager. Under Vanemerak, Millonarios began to shine again, most notably in the Copa Sudamericana 2007, where they eliminated several powerful teams, most notably Brazilian champions São Paulo in the quarter-finals, thanks to two goals from Ricardo Ciciliano; although they had a less impressive performance in the local tournament.

2010s[]

Plagued by financial problems, and with no major titles in the last decade, the club finally initiated a bankruptcy process that led to its being bought by a society composed of about 4,000 fans, Azul & Blanco, SA This movement also meant a change in playing style which started with the hiring of Venezuelan coach Richard Páez. The change has proved successful, both financially and as related to championships. With Páez as coach, the team was able to win the Copa Colombia 2011 tournament, after winning both games against Boyacá Chicó, thus classifying to 2012 Copa Sudamericana. On June 24, 2012, it was confirmed that Hernán Torres would be the new coach.

In Copa Sudamericana, the team was highly successful, reaching semi-finals after eliminating Inti Gas, Guaraní, and the Brazilians Palmeiras, and Gremio, being eliminated by runner-up, Tigre. This came as a relief after an embarrassing defeat to Real Madrid in a friendly match to honor Alfredo Di Stéfano.

Despite the defeat, the team played a great first phase in the Colombian tournament, classifying to the play-offs as the best team of the semester. After a very difficult series of matches, the team reached the Finals which were to be played against Independiente Medellín. The first match was played in Medellín, and ended in a 0–0 tie. The final game was played December 16, 2012 in Bogotá, and ended up 1–1, thus the result had to be determined by a penalty shootout. Goalkeeper Delgado managed to stop a final shoot, and Millonarios won its 14th championship, the first Fútbol Profesional Colombiano title in about 24 years.

As the 2012 Finalización champion, Millonarios qualified to 2013 Copa Libertadores, where it played the second stage against Bolivian San José, Mexican Tijuana, and Brazilian Corinthians.

Under coach Ricardo Lunari, Millonarios started 2015 with three home victories against Patriotas, Cúcuta Deportivo and Cortuluá. Meanwhile, their debut in the Copa Colombia came with defeat against La Equidad.

In the 2017 Finalización League, Millonarios achieved their 15th division title after defeating Santa Fe in a final that saw 2 goals at the ending of the second half. Said final ended with a tie, that concluded an aggregate 3–2 win over their home rival.

Rivalries[]

Millonarios has forged many rivalries with several teams from the league, most notably with local rivals Santa Fe. This derby is popularly called El Clásico Capitalino (The Capital Classic). It is the only regional classic that has been played every season since the beginning of professional football. On September 16, 2007, Millonarios completed 100 victories in their clashes in the Bogotá classic against Santa Fe in the 248 classic with a score 1-0. The goal was converted by Gerardo Bedoya. Currently, the number of wins for Millonarios is 120 against 88 for Independiente Santa Fe, so the difference in victories of the blue ones, it is still more than 30. A trend that has been maintained in recent years.

As of 2015, Millonarios maintained a streak without losing to their patio rival Santa Fe with three draws and six victories. The most outstanding in the , when Millonarios eliminated Santa Fe from the 8 classified in the last day of the regular phase with a score of 1-3. The goals were converted by Román Torres, Fernando Uribe and Rafael Robayo.

On March 19, 2017 Millonarios cut an undefeated of 22 matches from the Cardenal team. Millonarios would win with a score of 3-0 with goals from Andrés Cadavid, Ayron del Valle and Deiver Machado. On December 13 of the same year, the Embajador team and the Cardenal meet in the final of the 2017 . In the first leg, where Millonarios officiated at home, they won after a header from Matías de los Santos. In the second leg, played on December 17, Millonarios traced an adverse result twice, first with a goal by Andrés Cadavid, and finally with one by Henry Rojas, for a 3-2 aggregate, with which he obtained his star number 15. There are also strong rivalries with other teams like América de Cali, Atlético Nacional and Deportivo Cali.

Honours[]

Domestic[]

League[]

• Categoría Primera A:

Winners (15): 1949, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1959, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1972, 1978, 1987, 1988, 2012–II, 2017–II

Runners-up (10): 1950, 1956, 1958, 1967, 1973, 1975, 1984, 1994, 1995–96, 2021–I

Cups[]

• Copa Colombia:

Winners (2): 1952–53, 2011.

Runners-up (1): 2013.

• Superliga Colombiana:

Winners (1): 2018.

Runners-up (1): 2013.

International[]

• Copa Merconorte:

Winners (1): 2001.

Runners-up (1): 2000.

• Copa Simón Bolívar:

Winners (1): 1972.

• Small Club World Cup:

Winners (1): 1953.

Regional[]

• Liga de fútbol de Cundinamarca:

Winners (7): 1941, 1943, 1944, 1945, 1946, 1947, 1948.

• Asociación deportiva de Bogotá:

Winners (1): 1940.^[4]

• Campeonato interdepartamental de Colombia:

Winners (1): 1947.^[4]

Performance in CONMEBOL competitions[]

• Copa Libertadores: 17 appearances

Best: Semi-finals in 1960, 1973, 1974 - Quarter-finals in 1962, 1963, 1964, 1989, 1995

• Copa Sudamericana: 4 appearances

2004: Preliminary Round

2007: Semi-finals

2012: Semi-finals

2014: First Round

2018: Round of 16

• Copa Merconorte: 4 appearances

1998: Semi-finals

1999: Group Stage

2000: Finalist

2001: Champion

Players[]

First-team squad[]

As of 6 August 2021^[5]

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

No. Pos. Nation Player 1 GK  COL Christian Vargas 2 DF  COL Andrés Murillo 3 DF  COL Ricardo Rosales 5 DF  CRC Juan Pablo Vargas 6 DF  COL Andrés Román 7 FW  COL Ricardo Márquez (on loan from Unión Magdalena) 8 MF  COL Dewar Victoria 10 MF  COL Harrison Mojica 12 GK  COL Juan Moreno 13 DF  COL Elvis Perlaza 14 MF  COL David Silva (captain) 15 FW  COL Edgar Guerra 16 FW  COL Jader Valencia 17 MF  COL Daniel Ruiz (on loan from Fortaleza C.E.I.F.) 18 FW  COL Diego Abadía 19 MF  COL Juan Camilo García

No. Pos. Nation Player 20 FW  COL Fernando Uribe 21 MF  COL Juan Carlos Pereira 23 DF  COL Felipe Banguero 25 MF  COL Emerson Rodríguez 26 DF  COL Andrés Llinás 27 GK  COL Camilo Romero 28 DF  COL Stiven Vega 29 FW  COL Yuber Quiñones 31 DF  COL Omar Bertel 32 MF  COL Klíver Moreno 33 FW  COL Jorge Rengifo — DF  COL Breiner Paz — MF  COL Nicolás Murcia — FW  COL Orles Aragón — FW  COL Luis Paredes

On loan[]

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

No. Pos. Nation Player — MF  COL Nicolás Murcia (at Deportivo Coopsol) — MF  COL Sebastián Navarro (at Fortaleza C.E.I.F.) — MF  COL Juan Camilo Salazar (at Águilas Doradas)

Former players[]

• Tommy Mosquera

Records[]

Most capped players[]

Source: BDFA

R	Player	P	Career	App.
1	Bonner Mosquera	MF	1990–2001, 2002–2006	550
2		FW	1969–1978, 1981–1982	385
3	Julio Edgar Gaviria	DF	1968–1977	382
4		DF	1971–1981	371
5	Rafael Robayo	MF	2005–2011, 2012–2016	360
6	Arnoldo Iguarán	FW	1983–1991, 1993–1995	336
7	Alonso "Pocillo" Lopez	DF	1974–1980, 1982–1985	335
8	Willington Ortiz	FW	1972–1979	328
9	Miguel "El Nano" Prince	DF	1989–1998	321
10	Arturo Segovia	DF	1972–1979	316

Last updated on: 3 October 2018

Top scorers[]

Source: BDFA

R	Player	P	Career	Goals
1		FW	1948–1957	131
2	Arnoldo Iguarán	FW	1983–1991, 1993–1995	120
3	Marino Klinger	FW	1957–1966	99
4	Willington Ortiz	FW	1972–1979	96
5		FW	1969–1978, 1981–1982	91
6	Alfredo Di Stéfano	FW	1948–1953	88
7		FW	1975–1977	85
8		FW	1967–1969	85
9		FW	1977–1979	81
10	Jaime Morón	FW	1971–1974, 1977–1982	80

Last updated on: 3 October 2018

Managers[]

Affiliated teams[]

Co-ownership[]

Notes:

• The clubs are owned by , through its investment groups, as are 'Millionarios' .

Men		Women
Millonarios	(2014–Present)[6]		(2018–Present)[7]
Lens	(2016–Present)[8]	Lens Féminines	(2020–Present)
Padova	(2017–Present)[9]	Padova Femminile	(2020–Present)

Influence in other clubs[]

• :^[10][11] The club was founded in December 1957 after a tour of Millionarios in Inca lands. Currently competes in the third district division of Rímac, (fourth division of Peru) at the hierarchical level. The last official rapprochement between the two institutions occurred in 1976.

Brotherhoods[]

• River Plate:^[12] In the amateur age of Colombian soccer, the then known as Club Deportivo Municipal, began to bring Argentine players, so they were nicknamed ("Los Millonarios") as a mockery. Soon after, the directives decided to take that romoquete as part of their official name, which agreed with the beginning of the professional league and the now-called Millonarios continued to contract to a large extent players from River Plate, so the relationship between the clubs became recurrent. Some of the notable player transfers are: Néstor Rossi (from River to Millonarios) and Juan Gilberto Funes (from Millonarios to River).
• Real Madrid:^[13] The history between the two clubs is reflected in the 7 friendly matches in which they have faced each other since Millonarios has won 3, 3 draws have been presented and only one merengue victory has been seen. Millonarios became recognized as the only foreign club to beat the first golden generation of Real Madrid. In addition, between these two institutions, the transfer of Alfredo Di Stéfano, one of the best players in the history of world football, was presented.

References[]

External links[]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Millonarios Fútbol Club.

• official website
• Dimayor profile of the team