Estudiantes de La Plata

Lore & Background

In 1905, a group of football players and fans in the city of La Plata decided to break away from Gimnasia y Esgrima, the major club in the city, since Gimnasia's management neglected football after the closure of their field on 13th and 71st streets. Thus, on 4 August 1905, in the shoe store 'New York' on 7th Street, between 57 and 58 of the city of La Plata, the club was founded under the name 'Club Atlético Estudiantes'. Its first president, Miguel Gutiérrez, was elected on the very same night, when the club charter was drafted by card-carrying member #1, Alfredo Lartigue. Since its inception, the organization primarily was dedicated to football, but over the years the club expanded and incorporated basketball, handball, field hockey, tennis, swimming and golf, among others. On 28 February 1906 Estudiantes adopted a jersey design of striped red and white, in honor of Alumni, that had won ten championships between 1900 and 1911. However, during the early years, Estudiantes had to use a red shirt with a white stripe on the chest, because league authorities decided the uniform was too similar to Alumni's. The first pitch of the club was located at the intersection of 19th and 53rd streets in La Plata (now Plaza Islas Malvinas), with the first match being played on 7 November 1905, when Estudiantes faced Nacional Juniors from Buenos Aires. A year later, Estudiantes enrolled in the Associación Amateurs de Football (AAF). The stadium on 1st Avenue opened on 25 December 1907. Estudiantes' first achievement was the 1911 Primera B title which allowed the team to play at the top tier of Argentine football, Primera División. Just two years later Estudiantes won its first title in Primera, playing at the dissident Federación Argentina de Football (FAF). That season the team disputed 18 matches, winning 14 with only 1 lost and scoring 64 goals (with an average of 3,55 goals per match). In 1914 Estudiantes made another great campaign but the team finished second to Porteño. 1919 saw Estudiantes finishing second to champion Boca Juniors although the Association put an end to the tournament with 14 fixtures still to be played. The Association alleged that 'the championship took longer than expected' so it was suddenly finished. In subsequent years, Estudiantes made irregular campaigns, in some cases finishing at the bottom of the table. Nevertheless, the team made a great

In Their Own Story

At La Bombonera, the air vibrates before kick-off, charged by the smoke and roar of the 12th man. When Estudiantes steps onto the green turf in their red and white kits, the opposition is met not just with skill but with a wall of sound. In these matches, a single turnover can ignite chaos; a midfield pass intercepted becomes a counter-attack that splits the defense. The striker's thunderous volley finds the net, silencing the home crowd only to be answered by an eruption from the visiting sector. It is a pattern repeated across decades, where pride is the currency and every goal feels like territory conquered.

Reader's Guide

The source article does not mention any rivalry between Boca Juniors and Estudiantes de La Plata. The only rivalry described is the Clásico Platense against Gimnasia de La Plata. No information is provided about any other rivalries, including with Boca Juniors.

Did You Know?

• Estudiantes was the first team outside the traditional 'big five' to win a professional league title, in 1967.
• The club won the Copa Libertadores three years in a row from 1968 to 1970.
• Alberto Zozaya scored the first goal of professional football in Argentina.
• Manuel Pelegrina remains Estudiantes' all-time top scorer with 221 goals.
• The club's famous offensive lineup in the 1930s was known as Los Profesores ('The Professors').