| Full name | Defensor Sporting Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nicknames | El Violeta La Viola El Tuerto El Defe La Farola La Cometa | ||
| Founded | 15 March 1913; 112 years ago (1913-03-15) | ||
| Ground | Estadio Luis Franzini, Montevideo,Uruguay | ||
| Capacity | 16,000 | ||
| Chairman | Diego Franzini | ||
| Coach | Ignacio Ithurralde | ||
| League | Primera División | ||
| 2024 | Primera División, 4th of 16 | ||
| Website | www | ||
Defensor Sporting Club is asports club based inMontevideo,Uruguay. Founded in 1913, Defensor has several sports sections, withfootball andbasketball being the most important and the ones in which the club has achieved significant achievements in Uruguay and internationally.
It is the third most highest winning club in Uruguay, with 24 official titles, only surpassed byPeñarol andClub Nacional de Football. The club's best performance at the international stage was in 2014, when they reached thesemi-finals of the Copa Libertadores, eventually losing toClub Nacional 2–1 on aggregate. They have won theUruguayan Championship four times: in1976,1987,1991, and2007-08. Their 1976 title win was especially notable in Uruguay's football history as it ended 44 years of dominance by Nacional and Peñarol.
Founded on 15 March 1913, asClub Atlético Defensor, with heavyweight insoccer, the name of the club was changed in 1989 toDefensor Sporting Club after a merger withSporting Club Uruguay, originally abasketball club. They played in the first professional league season in Uruguay, the1932 Uruguayan Primera División.[citation needed]
Defensor has won many qualifying tournaments (Pre-Liguilla) to theCopa Libertadores and has represented Uruguay on numerous occasions internationally. Regarded as one of the teams that creates and develops many players in Uruguay that become successful players worldwide, It is the first club of numerous players likeJorge "Polilla" da Silva,Sergio "Manteca" Martínez,Sebastián Abreu,Andrés Fleurquin,Marcelo Tejera,Darío Silva,Gonzalo Vargas,Diego "Ruso" Pérez,Nicolás Olivera,Martín Cáceres,Maxi Pereira,Álvaro González, andTabaré Viúdez.[citation needed]
Legendary coach Prof.José Ricardo de León brought Defensor to the national championship in 1976 and originated a football (fútbol) school of thought, consistently criticized as ultra defensive, that is still present nowadays in several teams and coaches.[citation needed]
In September 2007, the club was considered the World's Club Team of the Month by theIFFHS.[1]
Defensor plays its home games at its own stadium calledEstadio Luis Franzini which has a capacity for 18,000 spectators. The stadium was opened on 31 December 1963, and is located inParque Rodó,Montevideo.
Defensor Sporting has had a rivalry withDanubio in recent years, because of the two clubs being the next biggest clubs in Uruguay after the historical two: Peñarol and Nacional. Matches between them are called the "Clásico de los medianos" (Spanish for Classic of the Mediums).[citation needed]
| Type | Competition | Titles | Winning years |
|---|---|---|---|
| National (League) | Primera División | 4 | 1976, 1987, 1991, 2008 |
| Segunda División | 2 | 1950, 1965 | |
| Segunda División (1903-1914) | 1 | 1914 | |
| Divisional Tercera Extra | 1 | 1913 | |
| Half-year / Short tournament (League) | Torneo Apertura | 4 | 1994, 2007, 2010, 2017 |
| Torneo Clausura | 4 | 1997, 2009, 2012, 2013 | |
| National (Cups) | Copa AUF Uruguay | 3 | |
| Liguilla Pre-Libertadores | 8 | 1976, 1979, 1981, 1989, 1991, 1995, 2000, 2006 | |
| Campeonato Nacional General Artigas | 1 | 1960 | |
| Torneo Cuadrangular | 1 | 1957 |
![]() 1913 | 1915–present | 1922–25 | ![]() 1989 away | 1960s–1980s & 1993 | ![]() 2001 away
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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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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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