Francisco Varallo Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids
Francisco Varallo

Varallo in 1935

Personal information

Full name

Francisco Antonio Varallo

Date of birth

5 February 1910

Place of birth

La Plata, Argentina

Date of death

30 August 2010 (aged 100)

Place of death

La Plata, Argentina

Playing position

Inside-right

Youth career

12 de Octubre

Estudiantes LP

Gimnasia y Esgrima LP

Senior career*

Years

Team

Apps^†

(Gls)^†

1928–1930

Gimnasia y Esgrima LP

(36)

1930–1931

→ Vélez Sársfield (loan)

(16)

1931–1939

Boca Juniors

222

(194)

National team

1930–1937

Argentina

(7)

Teams managed

1957-1959

Gimnasia y Esgrima LP

Honours

Men's Football

Representing Argentina
Copa América
Winner	1937 Argentina	Team
FIFA World Cup
Runner-up	1930 Uruguay	Team

Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.

† Appearances (Goals).

Francisco Antonio "Pancho" Varallo was an amazing Argentine football player. He was born on February 5, 1910, and lived to be 100 years old, passing away on August 30, 2010. He was famous for being a powerful forward, scoring many goals during his career.

Varallo played for the Argentina national team from 1930 to 1937. He was part of the very first FIFA World Cup in 1930. He also won four top division titles in Argentina. One was with Gimnasia y Esgrima LP and three with Boca Juniors. With 194 goals in 222 games, he is the 3rd highest goal scorer for Boca Juniors of all time. He is also among the top 11 goal scorers in the history of the Argentine Primera División.

Varallo was the last player alive from the original 1930 World Cup. He passed away in his hometown of La Plata at the age of 100.

Playing for Clubs
- Starting Out in Football
- Becoming a Boca Juniors Star
Playing for Argentina
- International Goals for Argentina
Life After Football
His Passing
Achievements and Awards
See also

Playing for Clubs

Starting Out in Football

Francisco Varallo was born in Los Hornos, a part of La Plata Partido in Buenos Aires Province, on February 5, 1910. He started playing football when he was just 14 years old. Early in his career, people called him cañoncito, which means "little cannon" in English. This was because he had such a powerful shot!

When he was 18, Varallo tried out for Estudiantes de La Plata. He scored an amazing eleven goals in just three games. However, the leaders of his youth team supported Estudiantes' rival team, Gimnasia y Esgrima. So, they stopped him from joining Estudiantes.

Varallo ended up joining Gimnasia instead. He first played for their reserve team, then for the main team in 1929. In his first season with Gimnasia, Varallo helped them win the Primera División championship. They beat Boca Juniors 2–1 in the final match. In 1930, Gimnasia loaned him to Vélez Sársfield for free. He scored 17 goals during their tour.

Becoming a Boca Juniors Star

Varallo in action against San Lorenzo, around 1935

Varallo joined Boca Juniors for the 1931 season. This was the first professional football season in Argentina. Boca Juniors paid about $8000 for him.

He played for Boca Juniors for nine years. During this time, he helped the team win the Primera División title three times. These wins were in 1931, 1934, and 1935. In 1933, he was the top goal scorer in the league and in South America, with 34 goals.

In his nine years at Boca Juniors, he scored 194 goals in 222 games. This made him the club's 2nd highest goal scorer for a long time. Later, Martín Palermo broke his record in 2008. Varallo often played very well with his teammates Roberto Cherro and Delfín Benítez Cáceres. They both also scored over 100 goals for Boca Juniors. In 1938, he had a bad knee injury and could only play one game. He played more the next year, but had to retire in 1940 at age 30.

Playing for Argentina

Varallo with the Argentina national team on a cover of El Gráfico magazine in 1933

Varallo played for the Argentina at the first-ever 1930 FIFA World Cup in 1930. The tournament was held in Uruguay. He was the youngest player on the team. He played in all three group games and scored one goal against Mexico. He missed the semi-final due to an injury.

However, he was able to play in the World Cup final against Uruguay. He started as an inside right forward. Argentina was winning 2–1 at halftime, but they eventually lost to Uruguay 4–2. Varallo said that losing this final was his "greatest disappointment."

Varallo was also part of the Argentine team that won the South American Championship in 1937. He scored three goals in that tournament. This included two goals in a 2–1 win against Chile.

International Goals for Argentina

Varallo scored several goals for his country. Here are some of them:

On May 25, 1930, he scored against Uruguay in the Copa Newton.
On July 19, 1930, he scored against Mexico in the 1930 FIFA World Cup.
On December 14, 1933, he scored against Uruguay in a friendly match.
On December 30, 1936, he scored against Chile in the 1937 South American Championship.
On January 23, 1937, he scored against Uruguay in the 1937 South American Championship.

Life After Football

Varallo stopped playing football in 1940 because of his knee injuries. He later became a coach for Gimnasia y Esgrima from 1957 to 1959.

In 1994, Varallo received the FIFA Order of Merit. This award recognized his important contributions to football. He also received honors from the Argentine Football Association and the South American Football Confederation.

When he was in his late 90s, Varallo joked that he would have to come out of retirement if Martín Palermo broke his goal-scoring record for Boca Juniors. He celebrated his 100th birthday in February 2010. He was the last living player from the 1930 World Cup.

His Passing

Francisco Varallo passed away on August 30, 2010, in his hometown of La Plata. He was 100 years old. Many important people in football shared their sadness. FIFA president Sepp Blatter said that Varallo was a great person and an ambassador for football. The president of the South American Football Confederation also shared his sadness.

After his death, both of his former clubs, Gimnasia and Boca Juniors, announced a day of mourning. The South American Football Confederation asked for a minute of silence at all Copa Sudamericana games the following week.