Atlante F.C.

Did You Know?

• Atlante was originally founded on 18 April 1916 with the name Sinaloa, later changing to Lusitania and U-53 before officially becoming Atlante in 1921.
• In 1945, Atlante set a Latin American record for most goals in a single season with 121 goals in 30 matches.
• Goalkeeper Félix Fernández scored the decisive penalty kick (9–8) in sudden death to win the Segunda División Championship and return Atlante to the Primera División.

History

Atlante was founded on 18 April 1916 under the name Sinaloa by a group of young Mexican football enthusiasts led by Refugio "El Vaquero" Martínez. The team began playing in the La Condesa neighborhood of Mexico City. After briefly being called Lusitania and U-53, Martínez proposed the name Atlante, inspired by the battles of the Atlantic Ocean during World War I. During the 1920s, players such as the Rosas brothers—Manuel "Chaquetas" Rosas and Felipe "Diente" Rosas—and Juan "El Trompo" Carreño helped the club become popular among the working classes, earning it the nickname El Equipo del Pueblo.

Carreño scored Mexico's first goal in the Olympic Games in Amsterdam 1928 and the national team's first World Cup goal against France in Uruguay 1930. The Federación Mexicana de Fútbol initially barred Atlante from the Liga Mayor, but the club gained entry after winning proof-matches against Toluca (7–2) and América (2–1). Atlante then developed a major rivalry with Necaxa, considered the first classic in Mexican football. In the late 1920s and early 1930s, Atlante defeated several foreign teams, including Sabaria of Hungary (3–1), Sportivo of Buenos Aires (2–1 and 3–2), and Bella Vista of Uruguay (3–2). In the 1940s, Horacio Casarín emerged as a notable player for both Atlante and the Mexico national team.

Stadium: Ciudad de los Deportes, Azulgrana, and Azul

In November 2024, Atlante's board began having conflicts with the Cosío family, owner of the Estadio Ciudad de los Deportes, after the venue was closed by civil protection authorities of the Benito Juárez borough due to two mass events held on the same day at the stadium and the Plaza de Toros México. This forced Atlante to finish the 2024 Apertura tournament at alternate venues, playing its last regular phase match at the Cantera de los Pumas of UNAM and hosting liguilla home matches at the Estadio Hidalgo in Pachuca.