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| Full name | Caracas Fútbol Club | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | Los Rojos del Ávila (The Reds from Ávila) | |||
| Founded | 5 June 1967; 57 years ago (1967-06-05) | |||
| Ground | Estadio Olímpico de la UCV | |||
| Capacity | 23,940 | |||
| Chairman | Phillip Valentiner | |||
| Manager | Fernando Aristeguieta | |||
| League | Primera División | |||
| 2024 | Primera División, 8th of 14 | |||
| Website | www | |||
Caracas Fútbol Club is a Venezuelan professionalfootball team based inCaracas. The club has won twelveFirst Division titles making it the most successful in Venezuelan football history.[1]
They are nicknamedLos Rojos del Ávila, or the "Reds from Ávila". This refers to their red jerseys as well asCerro El Ávila, a mountain near Caracas.
Caracas FC was founded in 1967 under a group of friends led byJosé Beracasa and Jorge Cubeddu with the nameYamaha FC. The team was entered as an amateur team to the Football Federation of theState of Miranda. The purpose of the club was to allow for Beracasa and his friends to have somewhere to enjoy their free time. As a result, Beracasa created one of the most historical and winning sports franchises inVenezuelan history.
In 1984, renamedCaracas-Yamaha FC after successful seasons in the amateur league, the team was admitted into theSecond Division. Their first season in the professional league they won the division and gained promotion to theFirst Division.
Their first season in theFirst Division was unstable as they barely survived relegation. After an acceptable second season in 1986, where relegation was not a huge threat, they were renamed Caracas FC whenRCTV bought part of them and had joint leadership withYamaha. Under the guidance of Manuel Plasencia and Luis Mendoza as the managers of the club, the subsequent 1987 season was their best to date.
Reaching the last set of games in the eight-team tournament, they needed a place in the top two in order to qualify for theCopa Libertadores and compete on an international level. However, they lost on the last weekend to now arch-rivalsDeportivo Táchira and barely missed out on international competition. The next year brought changes for theFirst Division as it would now follow the European format of games being played from the Fall to Spring.
The 1988–89 season started well for Caracas FC and they even lifted theCopa de Venezuela but suspensions and injuries in the second half of the season almost led to the collapse of the team. However, even after many of the team's players left, the team was saved by the Cocodrilos Sports Organization, which was led byGuillermo Valentiner until his passing, and his son, Philip Valentiner is the owner today.
Despite a primarily amateur squad, the team finished fourth in the league during the 1989–90 season. Two years later in the 1991–92 season, under managerManuel Plasencia, who had stayed through the turmoil, Caracas FC won their first national championship. They went on to win the next two seasons, with the third title in 1993–94 being won under a new manager,Pedro Febles. However, after an unsuccessful 1994–95 season, Plasencia returned to lead the team to a title in the 1995–96 season. It is also worth noting that during this time Caracas FC won theCopa de Venezuela twice, though historically that competition has been marked by instability and anonymity.
After four years of titleless competition, they won their fifth national championship underCarlos Moreno. However, the 1999 season saw Caracas FC reach the semi-finals of theCopa Merconorte, their greatest success to date in international competition. The next year marked the appointment of the then 37-year-oldNoel Sanvicente took over the club. He is Caracas' most successful manager as he was able to win five titles in 2002–03, 2003–04, 2005–06, 2006–07, and most recently in 2008–09. He also led Caracas FC to its best ever position in South America's most prestigious club competition, theCopa Libertadores.
In 2010, Noel Sanvicente stepped down from the team following which Ceferino Bencomo took over as manager. Under Ceferino Bencomo, Caracas FC won its eleventh national championship title defeating arch-rival Deportivo Táchira in a two game final.
Caracas F.C. has developed many important players through their academy that are now playing for important clubs around the World, such as Ronald Vargas (AEK Athens F.C) and Luis Manuel Seijas (Internacional de Porto Alegre).
The club's colors are red, white and black.
Caracas Fútbol Club has played their home matches atCocodrilos Sports Park since the season 2006–07.Cocodrilos Sports Park has a maximum capacity of 3,500 people, with future expansions planned to 6,000 people, and then to 15,000. The field has anartificial grass surface.
For bigger national league or international tournaments games, the club has used theBrígido Iriarte Stadium. This stadium is also used by another professional Caracas club,Deportivo Italia. It has an official capacity of 12,000 people; however, there have been crowds of 20,000 spectators in games againstDeportivo Táchira (their historical rival),São Paulo and other teams.
RecentlyCaracas Fútbol Club has played at theEstadio Olímpico de la UCV which has a maximum capacity of 30,000 spectators. This has been used primarily for theCopa Libertadores along with importantFirst Division matches. Since the 2007–08 season theEstadio Olímpico de la UCV will be used as the temporary home ground because of the expansion and redesign ofCocodrilos Sports Park which is being used as a training facility in the meantime. The stadium meet all the requirements to perform international games like Copa Libertadores and Copa Sudamericana.
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Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Manuel Plasencia (Jan 1, 1993 – March, 1997)Noel Sanvicente (Jan 1, 1998 – March 18, 2010)Ceferino Bencomo (March 28, 2010 – May 15, 2013)Eduardo Saragó (May 17, 2013 – 2017)Noel Sanvicente (Jan 1, 2018 – 2021)Francesco Stífano (Dec 27, 2021 – 2022)Leonardo González (Nov 2022 – March 2024)
(in Spanish)
