Atlético Junior facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Junior

Full name	Club Deportivo Popular Junior Fútbol Club S.A.
Nickname(s)	Los Tiburones (The Sharks) El Equipo Tiburón (The Shark Team) Los Rojiblancos (The Red-and-Whites) Los Quilleros (The Quilleros) Los Reyes de la Costa (The Kings of the Coast) Los Curramberos (The Curramberos) Tu Papá (Your Dad)
Founded	7 August 1924; 99 years ago (1924-08-07) as Juventud Infantil
Ground	Estadio Metropolitano Roberto Meléndez
Ground Capacity	46,692
Owner	Fuad Char
President	Alejandro Char
Manager	Arturo Reyes
League	Categoría Primera A
2023	Primera A, 6th of 20 (Finalización champions)
Home colours Away colours Third colours

Club Deportivo Popular Junior F.C. S.A. (Latin American Spanish: [ˈʝunjoɾ]), commonly known as Junior de Barranquilla, by its old name Atlético Junior, commonly as Junior FC, or simply as Junior, is a Colombian professional football team based in Barranquilla, that currently plays in the Categoría Primera A. Junior is the main Caribbean team in the top flight of Colombian football. As of 2022, they sit in the 25th place of the best South American teams.

The club was founded on August 7, 1924. Known as Los Tiburones (The Sharks), or El Equipo Tiburón (The Shark Team). Junior have won the Colombian professional football championship ten times (1977, 1980, 1993, 1995, 2004 Finalización, 2010 Apertura, 2011 Finalización, 2018 Finalización, 2019 Apertura, and 2023 Finalización). Some of the most notable players that have played for the club include Heleno de Freitas, Garrincha, Dida, Juan Ramón Verón, Efraín Sánchez, Carlos "El Pibe" Valderrama, Iván Valenciano, Teófilo Gutiérrez, Carlos Bacca, Julio César Uribe, Giovanni Hernández, Sebastián Viera and Luis Díaz.

History

In the early 1920s a team named Juventus came into being at the Colegio Salesiano in the San Roque neighborhood of Barranquilla, made up primarily of Italian immigrants. Soon after its launch the name was changed to the Spanish Juventud, though both translate the same in English: youth. In August 1924 some of the younger members of Juventud along with other young men from San Roque created an offshoot of Juventud: Juventud Infantil.

Around the 1940s (and the club's name was shortened to simply Junior) they became known as one of the country's best clubs. In 1945 the players of Junior were selected to represent Colombia at the South American Championship (now known as the Copa América), finishing a respectable fifth (though losing 7–0 to Uruguay and 9–1 to Argentina along the way). In 1949 they were again selected to represent Colombia (finishing last place) but this time their decision to play would have its consequences.

In 1948 Junior were founder members of División Mayor del Fútbol Profesional Colombiano (commonly known as the Dimayor). Their debut match as a professional outfit came at home on August 15, 1948, against Deportivo Cali, which ended in a 2–0 victory for the home side. Early the following year they were again chosen to play as the de facto Colombia national team. Because of ongoing strife between Adefutbol (the original amateur Colombian football association) and the Dimayor, Junior were threatened with expulsion from the Dimayor if they participated. They went ahead and did so and were initially given a two-year suspension from the league. This was later reduced to one year and they returned to the Dimayor for the 1950 season.

This was the golden age of Colombian football commonly referred to as El Dorado, a time when the Dimayor was a "rebel league" unaffiliated with FIFA and many high-profile players from around the world broke their contracts and came to play. Junior were no exception, picking up players from Brazil, Argentina, Hungary and the Czech Republic in these years. But El Dorado eventually came to an end for Colombian football.

A way ahead surfaced in the mid-1960s when a rift had again developed in Colombian football, this time between Adefutbol and the newly created Federación Colombiana de Fútbol, an organization devoted to developing professional football in the country. Adefutbol was still the official body in the eyes of FIFA and organized the national team in this period and additionally Colombian clubs did not enter the Copa Libertadores. Peace was finally made and the bulk of the amateur team that had attempted to qualify for the England World Cup signed up for Junior, who returned to the Dimayor in 1966. Junior have remained in the top level ever since.

In 1977 Junior won their first Colombian championship, finishing first place in the Apertura. They won further championships in 1980, 1993, 1995, the 2004-II (Finalización), the 2010-I (Apertura), the 2011-II (Finalizacion), the 2018-II (Finalización) and the 2019-I (Apertura). They also won Copa Colombia in 2015 and 2017. Junior have appeared in the Copa Libertadores seventeen times (reaching the semi-finals in 1994), the Copa Sudamericana 7 times (reaching the final in 2018), and the Copa CONMEBOL 1 time.

Symbols

Badge

The team's badge has a Swiss shape; it is 6 cm wide by 8 cm tall, divided into two horizontal stripes. The inferior stripe is divided into 9 vertical white and red stripes. The superior part is another horizontal blue stripe where the stars are placed. The stars have 10 points; each star represents a league championships the team has won.

Flag

Junior's flag is composed of 9 horizontal stripes representing the 9 stars they have now, 5 red and 4 white ones which alternate, the superior and the inferior ones are red. Overlapped on top of the strips there is a blue triangle. This triangle occupies all the wide of the flag on its vertical side. The white stars are superimposed on the triangle.

Flag of Atlético Junior

Honours

Domestic

• Categoría Primera A

Winners (10): 1977, 1980, 1993, 1995, 2004–II, 2010–I, 2011–II, 2018–II, 2019–I, 2023–II

Runners-up (10): 1948, 1970, 1983, 2000, 2003–I, 2009–I, 2014–I, 2015–II, 2016–I, 2019–II

• Copa Colombia

Winners (2): 2015, 2017

Runners-up (1): 2016

• Superliga Colombiana

Winners (2): 2019, 2020

Runners-up (2): 2012, 2024

International

• Copa Sudamericana

Runners-up (1): 2018

• Reebok Cup

Winners (1): 1997

Performance in CONMEBOL competitions

• Copa Libertadores: 17 appearances

1971: Group stage

1978: Group stage

1981: Group stage

1984: Group stage

1994: Semifinals

1996: Quarterfinals

2000: Round of 16

2001: Round of 16

2005: Round of 16

2010: Preliminary round

2011: Round of 16

2012: Group stage

2017: Third stage

2018: Group stage

2019: Group stage

2020: Group stage

2021: Group stage

• Copa Sudamericana: 7 appearances

2004: Quarterfinals

2015: Second stage

2016: Quarterfinals

2017: Semi-finals

2018: Runners-up

2020: Quarterfinals

2021: Round of 16

2022: Group stage

2023: First stage

• Copa CONMEBOL: 1 appearance

1992: Quarter-finals

Players

Current squad

No. Position Player 2 DF Howell Mena 3 DF Edwin Herrera 4 MF Fabián Cantillo (on loan from Unión Magdalena) 5 DF Rafael Pérez 6 MF Didier Moreno (vice-captain) 7 MF Léider Berrío (on loan from Real Santander) 8 FW Yimmi Chará 10 MF Luis González 11 DF Yeferson Moreno 12 DF Gabriel Fuentes 13 MF Jhon Vélez 14 MF Homer Martínez 15 MF Bryan Castrillón (on loan from Independiente Medellín) 16 MF Vladimir Hernández 17 FW Marco Pérez 18 DF Emanuel Olivera 19 DF Carlos Cantillo

No. Position Player 20 FW Déiber Caicedo (on loan from Vancouver Whitecaps) 21 DF Walmer Pacheco 22 GK Sebastián Araujo 23 FW Steven Rodríguez (on loan from Independiente Medellín) 24 MF Víctor Cantillo 25 DF Brayan Ceballos (on loan from Fortaleza) 26 MF Diego Mendoza 28 DF Jermein Peña (on loan from Unión Magdalena) 29 MF Omar Albornoz 30 GK Jefersson Martínez 31 GK Jaime Acosta 33 MF Léider Berdugo 70 FW Carlos Bacca (captain) 77 GK Santiago Mele (on loan from Plaza Colonia) 80 MF Roberto Hinojosa (on loan from Unión Magdalena) 99 FW José Enamorado (on loan from Real Cartagena)

Out on loan

No. Position Player MF Fabián Ángel (at Deportivo Cali until 31 December 2024) FW Johan Bocanegra (at Deportivo Pereira until 31 December 2023) FW Brayan León (at Independiente Medellín until 30 June 2024)

World Cup players

The following players were chosen to represent their country at the FIFA World Cup while contracted to Junior de Barranquilla.

Club captains

• Hermenegildo Segrera (1966–1971)
• Dulio Miranda (1972–1973)
• Gabriel Berdugo (1974–1982)
• Dulio Miranda (1983–1985)
• Alexis Mendoza (1985–1990)
• Gabriel Martínez (1990–1992)
• Carlos Valderrama (1993–1995)
• Jorge Bolaño (1996–1999)
• Marquinho (1999–2004)
• Roberto Peñaloza (2004–2005)
• Hayder Palacio (2005–2007)
• Giovanni Hernández (2008–2012)
• Sebastián Viera (2012–2023)
• Carlos Bacca (2023–present)

Personnel

Technical staff

Position	Staff
Manager	Arturo Reyes
Assistant manager	Luis Grau
Assistant manager	José María Pazo
Fitness coach	César Gaitán

Notable players

Most appearances

Rank	Player	Appearances
1.	Sebastián Viera	627
2.	Dulio Miranda	445
3.	Hayder Palacio	432
4.	Alexis Mendoza	417
5.	José María Pazo	392
6.	Gabriel Berdugo	379
7.	Víctor Pacheco	367
8.	Jesús Rubio	363
9.	Luis Grau	341
10.	Othon Dacunha	333

Most goals

Rank	Player	Goals
1.	Ivan Valenciano	180
2.	Carlos Bacca	112
3.	Teófilo Gutiérrez	94
4.	Víctor Ephanor	86
5.	Nelson Silva Pacheco	81
6.	Víctor Pacheco	78
7.	Martín Arzuaga	70
8.	Vladimir Hernández	65
9.	Orlando Ballesteros	56
10.	Marcos Cardoso	55

Historic players

International players

The following players, despite not having been able to establish themselves as idols, had a stage as internationals with their national teams.

Managers

Notable fans

• Freddy Cricien, hardcore punk singer; Madball lead singer
• Diomedes Díaz, vallenato singer
• Martín Elías, vallenato singer
• Gabriel García Márquez, novelist, journalist and short-story writer; 1982 Nobel Prize Literature
• Melissa Martínez Artuz, journalist
• Ernesto McCausland,journalist writer and filmmaker
• Rafael Orozco Maestre, vallenato singer
• Edgar Perea, politician and football radio and television commentator
• Shakira, pop singer
• Paulina Vega, TV Host ,model and beauty queen; Miss Universe 2014
• Sofía Vergara, actress

Affiliated clubs

• Barranquilla Currently in the second division

See also

In Spanish: Junior de Barranquilla para niños