The place of memories - America de Cali 1987

July 15, 2021

Club history

América de Cali, known as América, is a Colombian soccer club founded on February 13, 1927 in the city of Cali. It is considered one of the biggest and most popular clubs in Colombia and one of the most important in South America. It plays its matches at the Pascual Guerrero Olympic Stadium and the color that identifies the club since its inception is scarlet red.

It is one of the Colombian clubs with the highest number of championships obtained at a professional level with 18 titles. At the national level, it has won the Colombian Primera A fifteen times, being one of the teams with the most championships in the tournament; also, he managed to be crowned champion of the Primera B in the annual tournament of 2016. At the international level, he managed to make outstanding participations in the Copa Libertadores de América, where he achieved four runners-up in the years 1985, 1986, 1987 and 1996, being the Colombian club that He has played more finals in the competition. Likewise, he managed to be crowned continental champion in the Simón Bolívar Cup of the year 1975 and in the Merconorte Cup of the year 1999; achievements that made it one of the most prestigious clubs in Colombia. For the IFFHS, it is the ninth best club in South America and the best in Colombia in the 20th century. It played its most important and traditional classics with Deportivo Cali in the so-called Clásico Valle del Cauca, and with Atlético Nacional de Medellín. He also played other historical classics against the Bogotá teams of Millonarios and Independiente Santa Fe, with the latter in the so-called Clásico de los rojos

The turning point in its history came in the mid-1970s, when it won its first official title after more than 50 years of being established and after 31 years of the creation of Colombian soccer. His first official title was late in coming, because even though he was an occasional entertainer of the tournament, the lack of economic solvency marginalized him from the prominence he deserved due to his historical importance and popular roots, for the 80s he would achieve the record of 5 consecutive championships ( 1982,1983,1984,1985 and 1986) and three consecutive Copa Libertadores finals (1985, 1986 and 1987), leaving runner-up on all occasions, now consolidating with titles not only its historical importance but also its appearance on the international scene

In 2011, after 57 years in the first division, he lost the category, descending to Primera B, in which he played since the 2012 season, after falling in the promotion series against Patriotas Boyacá in a series of penalties,31 thus being until now the first big team from Colombia to descend to the second division. His stay in the promotion tournament lasted 5 years, since in November 2016 América achieved promotion and returned to the Colombian First Division.

In March 2012 and after 4 years of failed efforts aimed at restructuring for subsequent sanitation, the new organization América SA was created. In addition, it went from 2,500 contributors to 211 shareholders. On Wednesday, April 18, 2012, the new company was officially presented to Dimayor,36 who went on to recognize the entity that owns the team's sports rights no longer as "Corporación Deportiva América" but as "Sociedad Anónima Deportiva América SA" and, subsequently and in a simplified manner, "América de Cali SA".

Currently, it is the fifth best Colombian team

of the 21st century and the thirty-seventh in South America in the period 2001-2010 according to the IFFHS. In Conmebol it is the second best Colombian club in international tournaments with 512.58 points. It is recognized by FIFA as one of the Classic Clubs of the World

The historic moment of the t-shirt

That day we had, badly counted, 7 goal options. There were opportunities that did not materialize because he had gotten into his head that the one who scored a goal would earn a little more than the others. Unfortunately for the whole group, all the defenders noticed. We had a meeting after the game. We were having a few drinks and we all let off steam. They told what they had been offered. They were all the forwards ” , he narrated.

And I add: Willington Ortiz he said, 'they offered me so much'. Ricardo Gareca and Juan Manuel Battaglia also. And the Pony Maturana also. We asked them for sincerity and they recognized (...). we realized with Enrique Esterilla because Pony was in the room with us. He said that a manager called him and they offered him money. Not us."