Club Deportivo Jorge Wilstermann, known simply as Wilstermann, is a Bolivian
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
club from the city of
Cochabamba
Cochabamba ( ay, Quchapampa; qu, Quchapampa) is a city and municipality in central Bolivia in a valley in the Andes mountain range. It is the capital of the Cochabamba Department and the fourth largest city in Bolivia, with a population of 63 ...
, founded on 24 November 1949 by a group of workers of
Lloyd Aereo Boliviano. It is named after Bolivian aviator
Jorge Wilstermann. Wilstermann is one of the three most frequent winners of the
Primera Division de Bolivia and the first Bolivian team to qualify to the
Copa Libertadores
The CONMEBOL Libertadores, also known as the Copa Libertadores de América ( pt, Copa Libertadores da América), is an annual international club football competition organized by CONMEBOL since 1960. It is the highest level of competition in S ...
semi-finals.
History
On November 24, 1949,
a group of employees of
Lloyd Aéreo Boliviano
Lloyd Aéreo Boliviano S.A.M. (abbreviated LAB and internationally known as LAB Airlines), was the flag carrier and principal airline of Bolivia from 1925 until it ceased operations in 2010. Before its demise it was headquartered in Cochabamba ...
met to form a football club that would be identified with the company and become the pride of its workers. After two hours of debate, they founded the club with the name "San Jose de la Banda" in tribute to the area and the airport in Cochabamba. They proceeded to the election of the board, and appointed
Justo Mancilla as club president. After some debate, blue and white were chosen as the team colors.
After the death of the company's first commercial pilot in Bolivia, Jorge Wilstermann, the name of the club was changed. In 1953, Captain
Walter Lemma, manager of the company and partner of the deceased, suggested that both the airport and the team bear the name of the pilot, who had been very dear to the institution.
After the club's foundation, the leaders entered it in
Cochabamba's Football Association (AFC) to compete in the second division. Wilstermann had no clear rival for first place and its good campaign forced it to seek to move into the AFC championship, which was played in La Paz and Oruro between teams from those cities.
When Dr. Jorge Rojas was appointed Wilstermann's chairman, he changed its colors to red and blue. "I chose those colors because they mean force, ferocity, and total dedication in the field", he stated. It was also the only team in the country which used those colors.
Golden ages
First golden era
Wilstermann's first national title came in 1958. This was the first in the club's "golden age", highlighted by star players such as
Walter Zamorano,
Mario Zabalaga,
José Carlos Trigo, César Sánchez,
Máximo Alcócer
Máximo Luis Alcócer (15 April 1933 – 13 May 2014) was a Bolivian footballer whose career lasted for almost ten years. His career debut began in 1954. He retired in 1964.
Club career
Alcócer played for Club Union Maestranza, Club Wilste ...
,
Ausberto García
Ausberto García (born 9 February 1934) is a Bolivian footballer. He played in nine matches for the Bolivia national football team from 1963 and 1967. He was also part of Bolivia's squad that won the 1963 South American Championship
The 1963 ...
,
Renán López,
Alfredo Soria,
Rómulo Cortez,
Wilfredo Villarroel,
José Trujillo
José is a predominantly Spanish and Portuguese form of the given name Joseph. While spelled alike, this name is pronounced differently in each language: Spanish ; Portuguese (or ).
In French, the name ''José'', pronounced , is an old vernacul ...
, and
José Rocabado
José is a predominantly Spanish and Portuguese form of the given name Joseph. While spelled alike, this name is pronounced differently in each language: Spanish ; Portuguese (or ).
In French, the name ''José'', pronounced , is an old vernacu ...
. At that time, Wilstermann was the only team in Bolivia that played with five
forwards, which shattered defenses.
In 1959, Wilstermann repeated as national champions, earning the honor to be the representative Bolivian side in the first edition of the
Copa Libertadores de América
The CONMEBOL Libertadores, also known as the Copa Libertadores de América ( pt, Copa Libertadores da América), is an annual international club association football, football competition organized by CONMEBOL since 1960. It is the highest level ...
in 1960. Their initial match pitted them against
Peñarol
Club Atlético Peñarol (; English: ''Peñarol Athletic Club'') —also known as ''Carboneros'', ''Aurinegros,'' and (familiarly) ''Manyas''— is a Uruguayan sports club from Montevideo. The name "Peñarol" comes from the Peñarol neigh ...
of
Uruguay
Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...
. The Uruguayans defeated Wilstermann 7–1 in
Montevideo
Montevideo () is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Uruguay, largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2011 census, the city proper has a population of 1,319,108 (about one-third of the country's total population) in an area of . M ...
, although the Bolivians drew their home game 1–1. In 1960, Wilstermann won its third consecutive national title, an achievement that has not been equalled by any other Bolivian club.
In the 1961 Copa competition, Wilster played to a tie against
Santa Fe, Colombia, winning 3–2 in Cochabamba and losing 1–0 in
Colombia
Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...
. The governing body decided to draw lots to determine which team would advance to the next round. "The draw was a fraud. After many years we learned that the full intention of the
South American Football Confederation
The South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL, , or CSF; es, Confederación Sudamericana de Fútbol; pt, Confederação Sul-Americana de Futebol) is the continental governing body of football in South America (apart from Guyana, Suri ...
, which at that time was based in Bogota, was to eliminate Wilstermann and promote Santa Fe to the semi-finals," claimed then Wilster club chairman, the late Jorge Rojas. The unsubstantiated story was that both of the pieces of paper that were put in the hat had Wilstermann's name. The team that was drawn was eliminated. "The Confederation official of that process confessed that he had been forced to proceed in this manner," recalled Rojas.
Second golden era
Wilstermann enjoyed a second "golden era" in the 1970s under the chairmanship of
Alfredo Salazar. The Wilstermann team again won the national championships in 1972 and 1973. "They were spectacular years. Wilstermann had that mystique of a winning team: they did not like to lose ever, even less to a visiting side. Besides they were always on the attack and even achieved a historic 2–2 tie with
River Plate in
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...
," recalls
Antonio Yanez, organization leader since 1975.
The Wilstermann sides of this era were highlighted by players such as
Rene Bilbao, Hugo Pérez,
Jaime Olivera,
Juan José Ponce,
Limbert Cabrera Rivero, Freddy Vargas,
Juan Carlos Sánchez, Hugo Franco,
Carlos Canelas, Alberto Navarro,
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
ian
Milton Teodoro Joana,
Chilean's Juan Abel Gangas and
Victor Hugo Bravo.
Third golden era
Following a period of club organizational turmoil and the founding of the professional football league of Bolivia, the
Liga de Fútbol Profesional Boliviano
Liga or LIGA may refer to:
People
* Līga (name), a Latvian female given name
* Luciano Ligabue, more commonly known as Ligabue or ''Liga'', Italian rock singer-songwriter
Sports
* Liga ACB, men's professional basketball league in Spain
* Liga ...
, Wilstermann enjoyed its third "golden age", winning national titles in 1980 and 1981.
During this period, the team looked to achieve something sought unsuccessfully by many Bolivian football clubs before: qualifying for the second phase of the Copa Libertadores de America. In opening Copa round play, Wilster beat good teams
Técnico Universitario, Ambato and
Barcelona SC
Barcelona Sporting Club () is an Ecuadorian sports club based in Guayaquil, known best for its professional football team. Internationally known as Barcelona de Ecuador, in Ecuador it is simply referred as Barcelona, El Idolo (BSC) or Barce. T ...
. To seal their qualification for the second round, Wilstermann beat
The Strongest
Club The Strongest is a Bolivian professional football club based in La Paz, that currently plays in the Bolivian Primera División.
Founded in 1908, their team colours are yellow and black. Although they have a home ground, Estadio Rafae ...
4–1 in the match tiebreaker in a memorable match at the stadium
Estadio Ramón Tahuichi Aguilera
Estadio Ramón "Tahuichi" Aguilera Costas is a multi-purpose stadium in Santa Cruz, Bolivia. It is used mostly for football matches, on club level by Blooming, Oriente Petrolero, Destroyers, and Royal Pari. The stadium has a capacity of 38,000 ...
in
Santa Cruz de la Sierra
Santa Cruz de la Sierra (; "Holy Cross of the Mountain Range"), commonly known as Santa Cruz, is the largest city in Bolivia and the capital of the Santa Cruz Department (Bolivia), Santa Cruz department.
Situated on the Pirai River (Bolivia), P ...
, Bolivia.
In the second phase, Wilstermann faced the formidable rosters of
Deportivo Cali
Asociación Deportivo Cali, best known as Deportivo Cali, is a Colombian sports club based in Cali, most notable for its football team, which currently competes in the Categoría Primera A.
Deportivo Cali is one of the most successful footba ...
of Colombia and
Flamengo
Clube de Regatas do Flamengo (; English: ''Flamengo Rowing Club''), more commonly referred to as simply Flamengo, is a Brazilian sports club based in Rio de Janeiro, in the neighborhood of Gávea, best known for their professional football ...
of Brazil. They first tied the Colombian side 1–1 in Cochabamba, but fell 1–0 in Cali. The team from Rio de Janeiro defeated Wilster 2–1 at home, as well as in
Maracanã, 4–1. While these results were disappointing, Wilstermann had accomplished what no Bolivian team had before.
The Wilstermann sides of this era were highlighted by players such as
Roger Pérez,
Carlos Trigo,
Víctor Villalón, Carlos Arias, Eduardo Navarro,
Jhonny Villarroel, Freddy Vargas,
César Enriquez,
Jairzinho
Jair Ventura Filho (born 25 December 1944), better known as Jairzinho (), is a Brazilian former footballer. A quick, skillful, and powerful right winger known for his finishing ability and eye for goal, he was a key member and top scorer of th ...
,
Gastón Taborga and
Freddy Salguero.
Achievements
National honours
*
First Division – Liga de Fútbol Profesional Boliviano/División de Fútbol Profesional Era: 15
::1957*, 1958*, 1959*, 1960, 1967, 1972, 1973 (* Torneo Nacional), 1980, 1981, 2000,
2006-ST,
2010-A,
2016-C,
2018-A,
2019-C
::Runners-up (7): 1965, 1974,
*
Second Division, Copa Simón Bolivar: 0
*
Copa Bolivia
La Copa Bolivia is an official football competition organized by the Bolivian Football Federation, which is played by the direct elimination system, the winner of which qualifies for a Copa Simón Bolívar.
History
La Copa Bolivia was first hel ...
: 3
::1976, 1991,
1998
1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''.
Events January
* January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...
::Runners-up (2): 1989,
2002
File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...
*
Copa Aerosur
The Aerosur Cup was a Bolivian football tournament held in the La Paz, Cochabamba and Santa Cruz, sponsored by Aerosur airline. The original idea was to make AeroSur Cup a tournament for the winning teams from previous seasons in the whole countr ...
: 2
::
2004
2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO).
Events January
* January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...
,
2011
File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...
::Runners-up (4):
2003
File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...
,
2008
File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
,
2009
File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...
,
2010
File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...
Record in CONMEBOL competitions
*
Copa Libertadores
The CONMEBOL Libertadores, also known as the Copa Libertadores de América ( pt, Copa Libertadores da América), is an annual international club football competition organized by CONMEBOL since 1960. It is the highest level of competition in S ...
: 15 appearances
::Best – Semi-finals in 1981
*
Copa Sudamericana
The CONMEBOL Sudamericana, named as ''Copa Sudamericana'' (; pt, Copa Sul-Americana ), is an annual international club football competition organized by CONMEBOL since 2002. It is the second-most prestigious club competition in South American ...
: 2 appearances
::2007 – First round
::2014 – First round
*
Recopa Sudamericana
The CONMEBOL Recopa Sudamericana ( pt, CONMEBOL Recopa Sul-Americana), known also as the Recopa Sudamericana or CONMEBOL Recopa, and simply as the Recopa (, ; "Winners' Cup"), is an annual international club association football, football compe ...
: 0 appearances
*
Copa CONMEBOL
The Copa CONMEBOL ( en, CONMEBOL Cup) was an annual football cup competition organized by CONMEBOL between 1992 and 1999 for South American football clubs. During its time of existence, it was a very prestigious South American club football cont ...
: 1 appearance
::1998 – Quarter-finals
Current squad
''As of 1 December, 2022.''
Summer 2023
In
Out
Out on loan
Reserves and academy
Coaching staff
Managers
*
Rubén Darío Insúa (Jan 1997–??)
*
Dalcio Giovagnoli
Dalcio Víctor Giovagnoli (born 5 June 1963) is an Argentine football manager and former player who played as a centre back. He last managed Chilean club Rangers de Talca.
Honours
Club
;Jorge Wilstermann
* Primera División de Bolivia (1): 1 ...
(1998)
*
Jorge Habegger
Jorge Habegger (born 19 October 1946) is an Argentinian football coach.
Career
Habegger started his career as coach in Colombia. He has trained clubs in Argentina, Bolivia, Saudi Arabia, Ecuador
Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; ...
(July 1, 1999 – June 30, 2000)
*
Dalcio Giovagnoli
Dalcio Víctor Giovagnoli (born 5 June 1963) is an Argentine football manager and former player who played as a centre back. He last managed Chilean club Rangers de Talca.
Honours
Club
;Jorge Wilstermann
* Primera División de Bolivia (1): 1 ...
(2002–03)
*
Luis Manuel Blanco
Luis Manuel Blanco (born 13 December 1953) is an Argentine football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of footba ...
(2004)
*
Mauricio Soria (July 1, 2006 – April 9, 2007)
*
Rubén Darío Insúa (Jan 1, 2007 – June 30, 2007)
*
Mauricio Soria (April 16, 2008 – April 21, 2009)
*
Eduardo Villegas
Eduardo Andres Villegas Camarena (born 29 March 1964) is a Bolivian association football, football manager and former player who played as a Defender (association football), defender.
Club career
Villegas began his career at hometown club :es:C ...
(Jan 1, 2009 – Oct 30, 2009)
*
Marcelo Neveleff
Gabriel Marcelo Neveleff (born 9 March 1963) is an Argentine football manager who manages the Dominican Republic national football team
The Dominican Republic national football team ( es, Selección de fútbol de República Dominicana) repres ...
(Jan 14, 2011 – April 16, 2012)
*
Claudio Chacior (April 2011 – April 12)
*
Mauricio Soria (May 2012 – Dec 12)
*
Victor Hugo Andrada (Jan 1, 2013 – Sept 30, 2013)
*
Néstor Clausen
Néstor Rolando Clausen (born 29 September 1962) is an Argentine football manager and former player who played as a defender.
A native of Arrufó, Santa Fe Province, his ancestors were originally from Ernen, Valais in Switzerland and emigra ...
(July 1, 2013 – Dec 31, 2013)
*
Marcelo Carballo (Dec 2013)
*
Manuel Alfaro (Jan 1, 2014 – March 25, 2014)
*
Marcelo Carballo (March 26, 2013 – May 25, 2014)
*
Julio César Baldivieso
Julio César Baldivieso Rico (born 2 December 1971) is a Bolivian football coach and former player who played as an attacking midfielder.
Baldivieso was a midfielder who played for the Bolivia national team at the 1994 World Cup and several Co ...
(June 3, 2014 – Dec 21, 2014)
*
Juan Manuel Llop
Juan Manuel Llop (born 1 June 1963 in Arroyo Dulce, Santa Fe) is an Argentine football manager and former player who played as a midfielder.
Before taking up management Llop had a 15-year career as a football player, he made appearances for se ...
(Jan 5, 2015 – Dec 23, 2015)
*
Julio Alberto Zamora (Jan 2, 2016 – Dec 06, 2016)
*
Roberto Mosquera
Roberto Orlando Mosquera Vera (born 21 June 1956) is a Peruvian people, Peruvian association football, football Manager (association football), manager and former player who played as a Forward (association football), forward. He is the current m ...
(Jan 5, 2017 – Nov 6, 2017)
*
Álvaro Peña (Nov 10, 2017 – Dic 19, 2018)
*
Miguel Angel Portugal (Jan 2, 2019 – April 21, 2019)
*
Christian Díaz
Christian Lionel Díaz (born 12 May 1976) is an Argentine football manager and former player who played as a left back. He is the current manager of Bolivian club Jorge Wilstermann.
Playing career
Born in Florencio Varela Partido, Buenos Ai ...
(Jun 2, 2019 – Jan 1, 2021)
*
Mauricio Soria (Jan 4, 2021 – April 26, 2021)
*
Diego Cagna (April 29, 2021 – Sep 24, 2021)
*
Miguel Ponce
Miguel Andrés Ponce Torres (born 19 August 1971) is a Chilean football manager and former player who played as a defender. He is the current manager of Deportes Iquique.
Honours Club
;Universidad Católica
* Primera División de Chile
Prime ...
(Jan 3, 2022 – April 16, 2022)
*
Álvaro Peña (June 7, 2022 – August 4, 2022)
*
Alberto Illanes (August 8, 2022 – January 3, 2023)
*
Andrés Marinangeli
Roberto Andrés Marinangeli (born 24 April 1981) is an Argentine football manager and former player who played as a goalkeeper.
Playing career
Born in Pérez, Santa Fe, Marinangeli began his career with Renato Cesarini, and played for the reser ...
(January 5, 2023 – ...)
References
External links
*
Fan siteFan site
{{Liga de Fútbol Profesional Boliviano
Association football clubs established in 1949
Wilstermann
Club Deportivo Jorge Wilstermann, known simply as Wilstermann, is a Bolivian football club from the city of Cochabamba, founded on 24 November 1949 by a group of workers of Lloyd Aereo Boliviano. It is named after Bolivian aviator Jorge Wilste ...
1949 establishments in Bolivia