Boca Juniors
| Boca Juniors Crest | |||
| Full name | Club Atlético Boca Juniors | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | Xeneizes, Boquita, Boquenses, La Mitad Más Uno | ||
| Founded | 3 April1905 | ||
| Ground | Estadio Alberto J. Armando (La Bombonera), La Boca, Buenos Aires | ||
| Capacity | 57,395 | ||
| Chairman |  Mauricio Macri | ||
| Head Coach | Miguel Angel Russo | ||
| League | Argentine Primera División | ||
| Clausura 2007 | 2nd | ||
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| |||
Club Atlético Boca Juniors is a popular Argentine sports club, best known for its football team. Its home base is the neighbourhood of La Boca, in Buenos Aires, and it hosts its home games at the Estadio Alberto J. Armando (La Bombonera) at 805 Brandsen Street.
Boca have won a record 17 international titles, an honor they share only with AC Milan,[1][2], including six Copa Libertadores[3] and three World Club crowns (Copa Intercontinental)[4] and one Copa Oro and Supercopa Masters. The club has also won 22 Argentine professional championships[5].
The club is a permanent fixture in the International Federation of Football History & Statistics Club World Ranking top 30 and has reached the top position of the monthly ranking 6 times (mostly during coach Carlos Bianchi's tenure).[6]
History
Foundation
On 3 April 1905, five Italian immigrants gathered in the Plaza Solís, located in the heart of the La Boca neighborhood of Buenos Aires.[7] Esteban Baglietto, Alfredo Scarpatti, Santiago Sana, and brothers Juan and Teodoro Farenga founded Boca Juniors, the use of English language in team names was commonplace, as British railroad workers had originally introduced football into Argentina.[8]
Boca Juniors played in local leagues and the amateur second division until being promoted to the first division in 1913, when the division was expanded from six teams to 15[9]. Boca were never relegated; they won six amateur championships (1919, 1920, 1923, 1924, 1926, and 1930).[10] With the introduction of professionalism in Argentina, Boca won the first title in 1931.[11]
- First Match: May 6, 1905. vs. Mariano Moreno.
- First international match: December 8, 1907. vs. Universal (Montevideo, Uruguay)
- First professional match: May 31, 1931 vs. Chacarita Juniors.
Team colours
The original jersey colour was pink, which was quickly abandoned for thin black-and-white vertical stripes[12]. The legend has it that in 1906 Boca played another team that used these colors, to decide who would get to keep them. Boca lost, and decided to adopt the colors of the flag of the first boat to subsequently sail into the port at La Boca which was the 4146 ton freighter Drottning Sophia, sailing from Copenhagen[13]. As the boat was from Sweden, yellow and blue were adopted as the new team colours. The first version had a yellow diagonal band, which was later changed to a horizontal stripe. [14]
Kit Evolution and rare kits
- First kit evolution
     1905
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1905
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 1905-06
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 1907-13
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 1913-present
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- Away and special editions
 1998 Copa Mercosur
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 2000-01 Copa Mercosur
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2005 100th.anniv*
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 2006 away
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(*)this model was worn just for 2 matches
Crest
The club have had five different crests in their history, the outer shape of the crest has remained unchanged throughout Boca's history. In 1955, laurel leaves were added to celebrate the club's 50th anniversary, and the colours were changed to match those on the team's jersey[15].
In 1970, one star was added to the badge for each title won [16] domestically (top part, above the initials) and internationally (bottom part). A new star is added to the corresponding section whenever Boca wins a title. To the delight of fans, the crest has had to be modified several times in recent years, most recently after Boca's victory in the 2007 Copa Libertadores[17].
File:CABJ-1912.jpg File:Cabj1920-55.gif File:Cabj1955.gif File:Cabj1960-70.gif File:Cabj1970.gif
La Bombonera
Boca Juniors used several fields before settling on the current grounds on Brandsen. Their first ground was in la Dársena Sur but it was vacated in 1907 because it failed to meet the minimum requirements of the league, they then used three pitches in the Isla Demarchi area between 1908 and 1912[18]. Between 1914 and 1915 the club moved away from La Boca for the only time in their history, moving to Wilde in the Avellaneda Partido of the Buenos Aires Province but a relatively poor season[19] and low attendences in 1915 forced them to move back to La Boca.
On May 25 1916 Boca opened their new stadium on the intersection of Calle Ministro Brin and Calle Senguel they stayed there until 1924 when they moved to their current location on Calle Brandsen and Calle Del Crucero.
Construction work on the concrete structure of their current stadium started in 1938 under the supervision of Engineer José L.Delpini. Boca played their home matches in the Ferrocarril Oeste field in Caballito until the structure was completed in 1940[20]. A third level was added in 1953, giving the ground its nickname La Bombonera ('The Chocolate Box')[21]. The side opposite the Casa Amarilla railway platforms remained mostly unbuilt until 1996, when it was upgraded with new balconies and VIP booths. Three sides of the Bombonera are made up of traditional sloping stadium stands, but the fourth side had to be built vertically, with several seating areas stacked one on top of the other, to stay within the stadium's property. La Bombonera is renowned for vibrating when fans start to jump in rhythm; in particular, the unique vertical side will sway slightly, leading to the phrase "La Bombonera no tiembla. Late" ("the Bombonera does not tremble. It beats.").
The Bombonera currently has a capacity of around 61,000, the club's popularity make tickets hard to find, especially for the Superclasico game against River Plate[22]. There are planned improvements for the stadium, including measures to ease crowd congestion, use of new technology in the stadium and improved corporate facilities[23].
- Dársena Sud: 1908 - 1912
- Wilde: 1914 - 1915
- Brins y Sengüel: 1916 - 1924
- Brandsen: from 1924
Fans
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Boca Juniors is traditionally regarded as the club of Argentina's working class, in contrast with the supposedly more upper-class base of cross-town archnemesis Club Atlético River Plate [24].
Boca Juniors claims to be the club of "half plus one" ("la mitad mas uno") of Argentina's population, but a 2006 survey placed its following at 40%,[25] still the largest share.
The Boca-River Superclásico rivalry is one of the most thrilling derbies in the world.[26] Boca have won 114, River 102 and there have been 100 draws[27]. After each match (except ties), street signs cover Buenos Aires, at fans' own expense, "ribbing" the losing side with humorous posters. This has become part of Buenos Aires cultural ever since a Boca winning streak in the 1990s.
Nicknames
Boca fans are known as los xeneizes (the Genoese) after the Italian (especially Genoese) immigrants who founded the team and populated La Boca in the early 20th century[28]. The word "xeneize" is Genoese dialect for the standard-Italian word "genovesi," which means "Genoese"[29]
The name bosteros (Manure Handler) originates from the horse manure used in the brick factory that occupied the ground where La Bombonera stands. Originally an insult used by rivals, Boca fans have taken to wearing it with ultimate pride[30].
Following the team colors, Boca's shirt is also called la azul y oro (the blue-and-gold)[31].
Boca's supporters are known as "Bosteros". There is a society which dedicates its entire life to the team which is known as la número 12 or La Doce (player number Doce or 12, meaning "the 12th player")[32]
International
Peñas (fan clubs) exist in many Argentine cities, and abroad, in countries such as Spain, Israel and Japan.[citation needed]
Boca Juniors are particularly popular in Japan because of the club's success in recent years at the Intercontinental Cup held in Japan. All over the world, fans are drawn to Boca by the club's international titles, and by the successes of Boca players who went on to play in European football such as Diego Maradona,Claudio Paul Caniggia, Gabriel Batistuta, Juan Román Riquelme and Carlos Tevez.[citation needed]
Boca have fans throughout Latin America, especially in Colombia and Peru, which are the home countries of many top players, parts of the USA due to Latin immigration and it´s plan to create a Boca USA for 2008 either in New York or Miami[33].
Facts
- Boca Juniors was the fifth football club in the world to have its own TV channel, opened in 2003. Boca TV broadcasted 24 hours a day, featuring sports programs and talk shows. The channel was closed in 2005.
- There is a line of Boca coffins available for dead fans,[34] as well as the official Boca's cemetery.[35]
- Boca has its own fleet of taxis operating in Buenos Aires.[36]
- Another of Boca Juniors' products is the Boca Wine.[37]
Institutional
Executive Board
- President: Mauricio Macri
- 1st Vice-president: Pedro Pompilio
- 2nd Vice-president: Gregorio Diego Zidar
- 3rd Vice-president: José Anunciado Cirillo
- Secretary: Luis Bartolomé Buzio
Other sports
Basketball
The Boca Juniors basketball team has won the Argentine league three times (1996/97, 2003/04, 2006/07), five Argentine Cups (Copa Argentina 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006), the Argentine Top 4 (2004), and three South American Club Championships (2004, 2005, 2006). It also reached the 2004/2005 national finals (losing to Ben Hur). Their home arena is the Luis Conde Arena, better known as La Bombonerita (small Bombonera).
Volleyball
Boca Juniors has a professional volleyball team that won the Metropolitan championship in 1991, 1992 and 1996, and achieved the second place in the 1996/97 A1 season. Because of a lack of sponsors, the team was disbanded, but later it was reincorporated through the coaching of former Boca player Marcelo Gigante; after playing in the second division, it returned to the A1 league in 2005.
Other
Starting 2005, the Argentine Turismo Carretera stock-car competition league spun off the Top Race V6 category, in which teams are sponsored by football teams. Veteran race pilots Ortelli and Bessone and former Boca player Vicente Pernía drive for the Boca team; Ortelli finally won the first Top Race V6 championship for Boca Juniors.
Women Football Titles 8: 1992, 1998, 1999, 2000 (unbeaten), 2001 Apertura, 2002 Clausura, 2003 Apertura, and 2004 Apertura.
In Futsal, Boca has won 4 Championships: 1991, 1992, Clausura 1997, and Apertura 1998.
Boca representatives also compete in other disciplines such as judo, karate, taekwondo, and weight lifting.
