 Players of Boca Juniors celebrating | |||||||
| Event | 1976 Campeonato Nacional | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||
| Date | 22 December 1976 | ||||||
| Venue | Racing Club Stadium,Avellaneda | ||||||
| Referee | Arturo Ithurralde | ||||||
| Attendance | 69,090[1] | ||||||
The1976 Campeonato Nacional final was the last match of the1976Campeonato Nacional ofArgentine Primera División. It was held at theRacing Club Stadium inAvellaneda on 22 December 1976. The match was the first official final played between both clubs,[2][3][4] which are the most popular in Argentina[5] and whose long-lived rivalry is known asSuperclásico.[6][7]
It was the fourth Primera División final played by Boca Juniors. The team had previously played a tiebreaker vHuracán in1923 (when the champion was defined after four matches held),[8]1929 (lost toGimnasia y Esgrima LP),[9][10] and1970 (defeatedRosario Central 2–1 atEstadio Monumental).[11]
On the other hand, this match was also the fourth league final contested by River Plate after the team had to define titles in1932 (win vsIndependiente)[12] and1936 Copa de Oro (defeatingSan Lorenzo de Almagro), while the team lost toChacarita Juniors in the1969 Metropolitano.[13][14]
Boca Juniors won its 20th league title after beating River Plate 1–0 with a free-kick goal scored byRubén Suñé.[4] Although official records indicate that 69,090 tickets were sold,[1] other sources state that the match was attended by many more people,[2] some of them estimating about 90,000 spectators.[4] Boca Juniors playerJorge Ribolzi spoke of it, stating that he had never again seen so many people attending a match.[2][3]
| Team | Previous finals app. |
|---|---|
| Boca Juniors | 1923,1929,1970 |
| River Plate | 1932,1936[n 1] ,1969 |
Bold indicates winning years
The neutral venue to host the match wasEstadio Presidente Perón inAvellaneda, home venue ofRacing Club, which had a capacity of 95,000 spectators by then. Nevertheless, some sources estimate that the stadium largely surpassed its capacity with more than 100,000 people attending the match.[20]
That was the second all-time record attendance in the history ofEl Cilindro, only after the second leg of the1967 Intercontinental Cup, when more than 120,000 supporters attended to watch the 2–1 win over Scottish sideCeltic F.C..[21][20]
In the first stage, participating clubs were divided into four groups of 8 teams each, playing a doubleround-robin for a total of 16 fixtures each. The two best placed teams in each zone qualified to the next round. Teams that advanced to the next stage were Boca Juniors andQuilmes (Group A), River Plate andBanfield (Group B),Huracán andUnión de Santa Fe (Group C), andTalleres (C) andNewell's Old Boys (Group D).[1]
In quarterfinals, Boca Juniors defeated Banfield 2–1 at Racing Stadium,[22] while River Plate won over Quilmes by the same score (two goals byOscar Más).[1]
In semifinals, Boca Juniors eliminated Huracán after a 1–0 win,[23] while River Plate earned their place in the final after beating Talleres de Córdoba 1–0.[1]
The two teams played a struggling match, showing their mutual respect. The first significately attack from River Plate was a distant shot by midfielderJuan José López. The ball was barely touched by goalkeeperHugo Gatti to avoid the first goal but conceding acorner kick to River Plate. That play caused Gatti to receive an ovation from Boca Juniors' supporters. Instead some other attempts by River Plate forwards, the score remained 0–0 at the end of the first half.[3]
At 72', defenderDaniel Passarella committed a foul trying to stop Boca Juniors forwardCarlos Veglio near the River Plate'spenalty area. Referee Arturo Ithurralde had previously talked with the captains of both clubs about recent changes tofootball rules introduced byFIFA.
Before the match started, the referee told the captains (Roberto Perfumo and me) that (due to rule changes) it was not necessary to wait the referee blew the whistle to kick. If opponents retreated the required distance, player taking the free kick was able to shot to the goal.
As none of the River players stood in front of the ball, Suñé sent it to the goal kept byUbaldo Fillol before the astonished gaze ofRoberto Mouzo, the supposed kicker. The quick action surprissed Fillol, who remained stood while the ball flew to the goal. The goal was largely celebrated by Boca Juniors' fans in the stadium, including former playerÁngel Clemente Rojas, regarded as the greatest Boca Juniors idol by then,[24][25][26] who was attending the match.[2]
| Boca Juniors | 1–0 | River Plate |
|---|---|---|
Suñé 72' | Report 1 Report 2 |
      Boca Juniors |  River Plate
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Despite the Boca–River match being broadcast on television, it was believed that there was no surviving record of that goal (only a photographic sequence published byEl Gráfico served as approach). Because of that, the goal was popularly known as "the ghost goal".[27][2] Nevertheless, in November 2019, Boca Juniors announced that a record of that goal had been found. The goal had been recorded by a fan collector fromEntre Ríos Province. He had taken the images directly from his television inSuper 8 film while the match was being aired.[2]
A short movie depicting some moments prior to the free kick and the goal was screened at thePassion for Boca Juniors Museum ofBuenos Aires. The release was attended by a select group of members and former players of the club.[28]
