Deportivo Cali facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Deportivo Cali

Full name	Asociación Deportivo Cali
Nickname(s)	Los Verdiblancos (The Green-Whites) Los Azucareros (The Sugarmakers) La Amenaza Verde (The Green Menace) El Glorioso (The Glorious)
Founded	23 November 1912; 112 years ago (1912-11-23)
Ground	Estadio Deportivo Cali Palmira, Colombia
Ground Capacity	44,000
Owner	2,000 members
Chairman	Humberto Arias Jr.
Manager	Alfredo Arias
League	Categoría Primera A
2024	Primera A, 15th of 20
Home colours Away colours

Asociación Deportivo Cali, usually called Deportivo Cali, is a famous Colombian sports club. It is best known for its amazing football (soccer) team. The team plays in the top Colombian league, called Categoría Primera A.

Deportivo Cali is one of the most successful football teams in Colombia. They have won ten national league championships! They also won one Copa Colombia and one Superliga Colombiana. This means they have a total of twelve big titles. Their home stadium, Estadio Deportivo Cali, is the biggest football stadium in Colombia. It can hold 44,000 fans!

What makes Deportivo Cali special? It's the only Colombian football club that owns its own stadium. It's also the only club in Colombia owned by its fans! In 1978, they made history as the first Colombian team to reach the Copa Libertadores final. This is a huge tournament for South American clubs. In 2016, a magazine called Forbes said Deportivo Cali was the 36th most valuable football team in all of the Americas.

History: How the Club Started and Grew

Early Days: The Amateur Era

The club's first logo from 1912

The club started in 1908 as Cali Football Club. It was formed by students who loved football. They learned about the sport while studying in Europe. In 1912, these students, led by the Lalinde brothers, officially organized the team. They renamed it Deportivo Cali. Their first coach was Francisco Villa Bisa from Spain.

Two early Deportivo Cali teams, "B" from 1914 and 1919

Their very first match was between two of their own teams, CFC "A" and CFC "B." About 300 people came to watch! By 1928, the club was called "Deportivo Cali A." It represented the Valle del Cauca Department in national games. They won titles between 1928 and 1930.

In 1945, other sports clubs joined Deportivo Cali. This added new sports like athletics, basketball, and swimming. In 1948, the team was ready for its first professional season. They joined the new national league. Their first professional game was a 2-0 loss to Junior. Their first home game was a 2-2 draw. But their first win came soon after, a 4-1 victory against Atlético Nacional!

Golden Years: A Time of Many Wins

Between 1965 and 1974, Deportivo Cali had its "golden era." This was a super successful time for the club. They reached 11 finals and won five of their nine Colombian championships. These wins were in 1965, 1967, 1969, 1970, and 1974. During this time, Deportivo Cali was one of the best teams in Colombia. They had many amazing players.

One of the most famous players was Jairo "El Maestrico" Arboleda. He was a midfielder who played with incredible skill. Fans in Cali still remember him as one of Colombia's best players ever.

Deportivo Cali played in the 1978 Copa Libertadores final against Boca Juniors

In 1978, Deportivo Cali made history again. They became the first Colombian club to reach the Copa Libertadores final. They played against Boca Juniors but sadly lost.

In the 1980s, other teams like América de Cali and Atlético Nacional became very strong. Deportivo Cali didn't win as many titles. They finished second in the league twice in a row, in 1985 and 1986. Famous players like Carlos "El Pibe" Valderrama and Bernardo Redín played for the club then.

In 1996, the club finally won another title after 22 years! Coach Fernando "El Pecoso" Castro and goalkeeper Miguel "El Show" Calero led them to victory. Two years later, in 1998, they won their seventh title.

Deportivo Cali played in the 1999 Copa Libertadores as Colombian champions. They did very well, reaching the final for the second time in their history! They played against Palmeiras from Brazil. After winning the first game 1-0, they lost the second 2-1. They then lost in a penalty shootout. Even though they didn't win, players like Mario Yepes and Rafael Dudamel were very important during this time.

Recent Years: Ups and Downs

The early 2000s brought some challenges for the club. On October 24, 2002, something very sad happened. Sadly, during a training session, two players, Hernán Gaviria and Giovanni Córdoba, passed away after being struck by lightning. This was a very sad time for the team. Even though they were leading the league, they couldn't recover and finished second in their group.

In 2005, Cali won its eighth national championship. But they also lost some finals to teams that were not expected to win. In 2010, Deportivo Cali won the Copa Colombia for the first time ever! They beat Itagüí Ditaires in the final. This was also the year their new stadium, Estadio Deportivo Cali, hosted its first official match.

A New Era: Building for the Future

In 2012, Leonel Álvarez became the new head coach. He led Deportivo Cali to the final of the 2013 league tournament, but they lost to Atlético Nacional. However, they got their revenge in 2014, winning the 2014 Superliga Colombiana against the same team!

In recent years, Deportivo Cali has focused on developing young players. In 2015, they won the league's Apertura tournament with a team mostly made up of young footballers. Players like Harold Preciado and Rafael Santos Borré became top goal scorers. Many young players from Deportivo Cali have even been called up to the senior national team.

In 2021, Deportivo Cali won their tenth league title! This was six years after their last one. They had a great season, especially in the second part of the year. Former player Rafael Dudamel became the coach and helped the team improve a lot. They reached the finals and beat Deportes Tolima to win the Primera A title. Harold Preciado was the top scorer of the tournament with 13 goals.

Crest History: The Evolution of the Badge

Crest Evolution

1912–16	1916–26	1926–48	1948–2012	2012–present

Rivalries: Who They Play Against

Clásico Vallecaucano: The Local Derby

Deportivo Cali has a big rivalry with América de Cali. This match is called the "Clásico Vallecaucano," which means the "Valle del Cauca Derby." A derby is a game between two teams from the same city or region. The first derby was played in 1931, and Deportivo Cali won 1-0.

The first professional derby was in 1948. On October 10, 2010, Deportivo Cali and América de Cali played their first derby at Deportivo Cali's new stadium. Deportivo Cali won that exciting game 6-3! The derby wasn't played in the top league between 2012 and 2016 because América de Cali was in a lower division. But they still played each other in the Copa Colombia.

• Total matches played: 317
  • Deportivo Cali Wins: 119
  • América de Cali Wins: 97
  • Draws: 101

Clásico Añejo: The Vintage Classic

Deportivo Cali also has a rivalry with Millonarios. This match is known as the Clásico añejo, or "Vintage Classic." It was one of the first big rivalries in Colombian football that wasn't just a local derby. The rivalry grew in the 1960s and 1970s when Deportivo Cali started winning many league titles. Both teams have often finished in the top two spots in the league. Even though other rivalries have become popular, this match is still very important in Colombian football.

Stadium: Their Home Ground

Panoramic view of Estadio Deportivo Cali in 2016.

For many years, Deportivo Cali played their home games at Estadio Olímpico Pascual Guerrero. They shared this stadium with their rivals, América. But in 2008, they opened their very own stadium, Estadio Deportivo Cali. It's also known as Estadio de Palmaseca.

Their new stadium is located just outside Cali, in Palmira. When it first opened, it could hold 52,000 people. After some updates, its capacity is now 44,000. Deportivo Cali started playing all their home matches there permanently in 2015.

Honours: What They've Won

•      record
• ^s shared record

Runner-up Finishes

Deportivo Cali has also finished second in many important competitions:

• Categoría Primera A (14 times): 1949, 1962, 1968, 1972, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1980, 1985, 1986, 2003–II, 2006–I, 2013–II, 2017–I
• Copa Colombia (2 times): 1981, 2019
• Superliga Colombiana (2 times): 2016, 2022
• Copa Libertadores (2 times): 1978, 1999
• Copa Merconorte (1 time): 1998

Players: The Team Members

Current Squad

Here are some of the players currently on the Deportivo Cali team:

No. Position Player 1 GK Alejandro Rojo 4 DF Jonathan Marulanda 5 MF Rafael Bustamante 6 MF Fabián Ángel (on loan from Junior) 7 MF Jarlan Barrera 8 FW Fabián Castillo (on loan from Tijuana) 9 FW Cristian Colmán 10 MF Javier Reina 11 MF Andrey Estupiñán 12 DF José Caldera 13 MF Alexander Mejía (captain) 15 DF Martín Rea 17 FW Fredy Montero 18 FW Juan Camilo Cantillo 19 MF Anderson Plata 20 DF Onel Acosta

No. Position Player 21 DF Francisco Meza 22 GK Gastón Guruceaga 24 DF Brayan Montaño 25 MF Freilin Moreno 26 DF Yulián Gómez 28 MF Gian Franco Cabezas 30 DF Fabián Viáfara 31 DF Jaider Moreno 32 GK Jhon Azcárate 33 MF Kelvin Osorio 38 GK Alejandro Rodríguez 70 MF Andrés Andrade 75 MF Juan Manuel Valencia 80 MF Dairon Valencia 94 DF Jimmy Medranda GK Humberto Acevedo

Players on Loan

Some players from Deportivo Cali are currently playing for other teams on a temporary basis:

No. Position Player GK Miguel Sánchez (at CAI) DF Miguel Caicedo (at Fortaleza C.E.I.F.) DF Kevin Moreno (at Cúcuta Deportivo) DF Juan José Tello (at Unión Magdalena) MF Daniel Mantilla (at Millonarios)

No. Position Player MF Joan Ramírez (at Real Cartagena) FW Jhon Cabal (at Real Cundinamarca) FW Carlos Lucumí (at Atlético Huila) FW Óscar Segura (at Internacional F.C. de Palmira)

World Cup Players

These players represented their country at the FIFA World Cup while playing for Deportivo Cali:

• Germán Aceros (1962)
• Buenaventura Ferreira (1986)
• Jorge Amado Nunes (1986)
• Bernardo Redín (1990)
• John Wilmar Pérez (1998)
• Juan Guillermo Castillo (2010)
• Faryd Mondragón (2014)
• Abel Aguilar (2018)
• Camilo Vargas (2018)

Notable Players

Many great players have played for Deportivo Cali over the years. Here are some of them:

Managers: The Coaches

Women's Team: Deportivo Cali Femenino

Deportivo Cali Femenino is the women's football team of Deportivo Cali. They play in the Colombian Women's Football League, which is the top women's league in Colombia. The team started in 2019. They are one of only four clubs to have won the Colombian women's league title! They won in 2021 and 2024. They also finished second in 2022 and placed fourth in the 2022 Copa Libertadores Femenina, a big South American tournament for women's clubs.

See also

In Spanish: Deportivo Cali para niños