Chivas de Guadalajara
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Template:Football club infobox Club Deportivo Guadalajara, also known as Guadalajara and usually referred to by its nickname Chivas, is a Mexican professional football club. Guadalajara plays in the Primera División de México and it is one of the most popular and successful teams in that league. Their main rivals are Club América, also a widely supported club, and their meetings signal the national derby (similar to Boca Juniors-River Plate, Real Madrid-Barcelona or Celtic-Rangers).
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Honours
Amateur Era
- League Championships: 13
Professional Era
- League Championships: 10
- 1956-77, 1958-59, 1959-60, 1960-61, 1961-62, 1963-64, 1964-65, 1969-70, 1986-87, Verano 1997
- League Runner-Up: 9
- 1951-52, 1954-55, 1962-63, 1968-69, México 70, 1982-83, 1983-84, Invierno 1998, Clausura 2004
History
The team was founded in 1906 by a Belgian shopkeeper, Edgar Everaert, as Club Unión, but became Club Deportivo Guadalajara in 1908. The uniform was modeled on that of the founder's favorite team, Club Brugge, which has however since changed its uniform.
The club was moderately successful in the amateur era of football in Mexico, but it was at the beginning of the professional era that it would get its famous nickname. In 1948 after winning a game the newspaper chronicle derisively said that the "goats" (chivas in Spanish) had won, this name, which started as an insult was embraced by the fans and is held with pride to this day.
Then, in 1956 the "Campeonísimo" run started. The team won eight national league titles and, combined with national and international cups, a total of 28 trophies in nine years, and became the backbone of the Mexico national football team that would go to the World Cup. Many of the players of those days became legendary.
With the advent of the 70's a Dark Ages of sorts came to the club, and fans had to wait until the 82-83 season to return to a Final, which was, appropriately, lost. In 1983-84 the Final was lost again, but finally in 1986-87 came the ninth title.
In the beginning of the 90's, the club was plagued by financial problems and a group known as "Promotora" took charge, cleaning the finances and bringing fresh air to the organisation. The league calendar was changed to two tournaments per year. During that decade, the team lost another three Finals but won the Torneo de Verano (summer championship) in 1997, bringing its league championships to 10, the most of any team in Mexico along with their hated rivals, America. Their last Final was in the Clausura 2004, where they lost against UNAM Pumas in a penalty shootout.
The team is perhaps best known for the fact that they have only ever fielded Mexican players (Athletic Bilbao in Spain and Deportivo Saprissa of Costa Rica, the latter owned by Chivas' current owner Jorge Vergara, are the only other clubs in the world to follow a similar policy), and the team itself is almost a synonym of what it means to be Mexican.
In 2005, C.D. Chivas USA, which is also owned by Vergara, began play in Major League Soccer.
On June 14, 2005 the Chivas stunned Argentina (and world) after eliminating Argentinan football club superpower Boca Juniors in the quarter finals round of Copa Libertadores. In the first-leg game the Chivas won a game played in Guadalajara with a resounding 4-0. In the second-leg game Boca Juniors was desperately on the attack seeking to bridge the gap quickly to no avail, as they could not penetrate the organized Mexican defense. After 79 minutes of play (Minute 34 of the second half) the game had to be stopped by the referee due to a quelling between players (specifically Adolfo Bautista and Martin Palermo), and the rage of the Boca Juniors fans who wouldn't let the game continue because of the launching of various projectiles in the direction of Chivas players and coaches. Chivas goalie Jesus Corona (loaned from Tecos specifically for Copa Libertadores) gave a historic performance stopping every shot made by Boca. The game finished in a tie 0-0 and Chivas advanced to the semifinals where they will face the F.C. Atletico Paranerense from Brazil.
Nocontabanconnuestraastucia.jpg
Image fom El Clarín newspaper
The day after the second-leg game Chivas controvertial owner Jorge Vergara displayed a one page advertisement on Argentina's newspaper of most circulation el Clarín who had a goat (spanish chiva) with the following statement: "No contaban con nuestra astucia" (You didn't count on our astuteness) a popular Mexican frase made famous by comedian Chespirito.
Current Roster
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External links
- Official site (http://www.chivasdecorazon.com.mx/) (in Spanish)
- Primera División (http://www.femexfut.org.mx/PrimeraDivision/)