April 3 – La Birth of La Boca
THEY say imitation is the most sincere form of flattery. Perhaps that is why there’s 14 clubs in the world, from Madagascar to Gibraltar, that go by the name of Boca Juniors. However, today’s tale of footballing history isn’t concerning the third division Bolivian side or even the chancers from Saint Lucia, but the real deal: the all-conquering Buenos Aires side that were formed today in 1905.
Fittingly it was a bunch of kids that were the founding members of Argentina’s most famous side. Five young Italian immigrants met at the Plaza Solis in the heart of the La Boca district of Buenos Aires and decided to have an organised kick-about. Esteban Baglietto, Alfredo Scarpatti, Santiago Sana, and brothers Juan and Teodoro Farenga came up with the name Boca Juniors as an English tone would make it sound more prestige and distance themselves from the social problems that the neighbourhood faced on a daily basis. It was also a nod to the British railroad workers that had introduced the game to South America.
Once they had a club, next on the agenda was to go about battling their way up to the top flight of Argentine football, winning 6 national amateur titles before the filthy lucre got involved. The advent of professionalism didn’t change too much though, as the trophies kept on flowing and Boca can currently boast of 46 league titles.
Boca’s iconic yellow-striped shirt actually came about by accident, as their earlier blue and white striped shirt clashed with another local team who went by the name of Boedo. The two sides then faced up, with the winner keeping their kit. Boca lost but one of their members who worked by the sea liked the look of the Swedish flag, so nicked it for his team and one of world football’s most recognisable kits was born.
Argentina’s finest can also boast of having one of the best named stadiums in world football: La Bombonera, or ‘The Chocolate Box’ in English, named after the fact that it reverberates like a tin of candy when the 61,000 or so Boca fans get excited. And never do they get more excited than when they play their rivals River Plate, in what is one of the world’s most explosive derbies.
Like all good local rivalries, the Boca-River Plate match is more than just a game for Joe Average in Buenos Aires. River originated in the poor La Boca region, but outgrew it in 1923, moving to the more affluent Núñez district, so Boca fans have been banging on for eighty years about how they are keeping it real. Fights, riots and mountains of coloured confetti have all been evident over the years, as Boca have accumulated a 65-61 advantage over their fiercest rivals.
During that time regulars at La Bombonera have seen the likes of Francisco Varallo, Antonio Rattin, Francisco Sá, Gabriel Batistuta, Claudio Caniggia, Juan Roman Riquelme, Juan Sebastian Veron and Carlos Tevez mix it with the best of them. Boca’s most famous son, and number one fan, is perhaps the greatest player the world has ever seen, Diego Maradona.
Check out some fan footage of La Bombonera in full flow below – it’s probably got a bit more atmosphere than most of us will be witnessing at a quarter to three this Saturday. We’re off to go and save up for a trip to Buenos Aires, but until we get there they’ll be more OTFD action, so join us tomorrow as we look at a goal celebration that not many South Americans would sniff at.
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