Luis Rafael Esteban Risco Alván (26 December 1945 – 15 February 2021) was a Peruvian former

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who played as a defender. Nicknamed "Calidad", he was known for playing for

Alianza Lima Club Alianza Lima, popularly known as Alianza Lima or simply Alianza, is a Peruvian professional sports club based in La Victoria District of Lima, Peru. It is widely known for having one of the most historical and successful football teams i ...

in the early 1970s as well as representing his home country during the 1970 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.

Club career

He would make his club debut within

Atlético Lusitania Atlético Lusitania was a Peruvian football club, playing in the city of Barrios Altos, Lima District, Lima, Peru. History The club was founded on the Barrios Altos, Lima District, Lima. The club was promoted to the Segunda Division Peruana up ...

at only 18 years of age for the 1963 and the 1964 seasons. In 1965, he would play for

Deportivo Municipal Club Centro Deportivo Municipal, commonly known as Deportivo Municipal, is a Peruvian football club based in Lima, Peru. They are among Peru's most recognizable clubs and enjoy considerable popularity. The bulk of their success was won a few ye ...

where he would play for two seasons until 1966. He was then transferred to play for Defensor Lima for both the 1967 and 1968 seasons. Risco briefly played for

Defensor Arica Defensor Arica was a Peruvian football club based in Breña, Lima. The club was founded in 1929 and reached the Peruvian Second Division in 1947. They were subsequently promoted to the first division in 1964. Their greatest achievement was second ...

where he would be part of the roster to reach runners-up for the

1969 Torneo Descentralizado The 1969 Torneo Descentralizado was the 53rd season of the highest division of Peruvian football. Despite being relegated at the end of the 1968 season, Carlos A. Mannucci returned to the first division through the 1969 Copa Perú. The format of ...

and direct qualification for the

1970 Copa Libertadores The 1970 Copa Libertadores de América was the 11th edition of CONMEBOL's top Association football club tournament. Estudiantes successfully defended their title for the second straight year by defeating Peñarol in the finals. Teams from Brazi ...

although Risco would only play for one season. Beginning in 1970, he would play for

where he would be part of the runner up squad for the

1971 Torneo Descentralizado The 1971 Torneo Descentralizado was the 55th season of the highest division of Peruvian football. The number of teams increased from 14 to 16 teams as four teams gained promotion. The last three teams were relegated from the first division. The n ...

as well as participate in the

1972 Copa Libertadores The 1972 Copa Libertadores was the 13th edition of the Copa Libertadores, CONMEBOL's the annual club tournament. Independiente of Argentina defeated Universitario de Deportes of Peru in the finals, and became the second team in the tournament' ...

. He was described as one of the club's best midfielders throughout his time within the club until his final season in the

1974 Torneo Descentralizado The 1974 season of the Torneo Descentralizado, the top category of Peruvian football, was played by 22 teams. The top six qualified to the final group stage. The relegation system was as follows: The last-placed team was relegated, the worst Lima- ...

International career

Risco played in the Peru national football team eight times with his debut occurring on 17 August 1969 in a match against

Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...

during the 1970 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. He would also play in the decisive match against Argentina at La Bombonera where it would end 2–2 for the Peruvians, eliminating Argentina from qualifying for the

1970 FIFA World Cup The 1970 FIFA World Cup was the ninth edition of the FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international Association football, football championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's senior national teams. Held from 31 May t ...

. His final match would occur on 9 August 1972 in a friendly against Mexico. During his tenure with the team, he would play alongside players such as Roberto Chale,

Héctor Chumpitaz Héctor Eduardo Chumpitaz Gonzáles (; born April 12, 1943, in Cañete) is a former footballer from Peru. Voted one of the greatest defenders of all times, among the 30 best defenders in football history and included within the 100 best player ...

, Teófilo Cubillas, Oswaldo Ramírez and

Pedro Pablo León Pedro Pablo León García (29 June 1943 – 9 May 2020), also known as Pedro "Perico" León, was a Peruvian footballer. Career León made 49 appearances for the Peru national football team between 1963 and 1973. He then started in the 1970 FIFA ...

. Risco would play his final season with Bolivian club

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 ...

for the before his retirement by the end of the season.

Personal life

Rafael was born on 26 December 1945 at the

Barrios Altos Lima is a district of Lima Province in Peru. Lima district is the oldest in Lima Province and as such, vestiges of the city's colonial era remain today in the historic centre of Lima, which was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1988 and ...

neighborhood of the Rímac District as the father of Rafael Risco Ramos who played for

Sporting Tabaco Club Sporting Cristal S.A. is a Peruvian sports club located in the city of Lima, best known for its football team. It was founded on 13 December 1955 in the Rímac district by engineer Richard Bentín Mujica and his wife Esther Grande de Bentín ...

in the 1940s. His brother Tadeo Risco was also a professional football player as he would later play for

Sporting Cristal Club Sporting Cristal S.A. is a Peruvian sports club located in the city of Lima, best known for its association football, football team. It was founded on 13 December 1955 in the Rímac District, Rímac district by engineer Richard Bentín Mujica ...

from 1970 to 1972. He would die on 15 February 2021, the same day of the 120th anniversary of his former club Alianza Lima. The

Peruvian Football Federation The Peruvian Football Federation ( es, Federación Peruana de Futbol or ) is the body that governs Association football in Peru. It was founded on August 23, 1922, and affiliated in 1924. A member of CONMEBOL since 1925, it directly oversees the ...

confirm his passing and offered their condolences to his passing.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Risco, Rafael 1945 births 2021 deaths Footballers from Lima Peruvian men's footballers Men's association football defenders Peru men's international footballers Peruvian Primera División players Deportivo Municipal footballers Club Alianza Lima footballers The Strongest players Peruvian expatriate men's footballers Peruvian expatriate sportspeople in Bolivia Expatriate men's footballers in Bolivia