Peru national football team

Football in Peru in the 19th century was brought by British immigrants and Peruvians who returned from England ^[7] . In 1859, the British founded a cricket club in the capital , which included cricket, rugby and football ^{[8] [9] [10]} . These sports became popular among the upper class Peruvians over the next decades. Their development in Peru was suspended from 1879 to 1883 , due to the Second Pacific War with Chile ^[11] . This sport has become a popular daily activity in Lima and other coastal regions ^[12] . In the neighboring port of Callao and other commercial areas, British workers and sailors often played between themselves and the locals ^{[13] [note 2]} . Rivals between locals and foreigners took place in Callao, and elites with workers in Lima . Over time, when foreigners left Peru, it turned into a rivalry Callao and Lima ^[14] . These factors, combined with the rapid development of this sport among the poor in the La Victoria region, are ( Lima ) (the Lima Alliance club was founded right there in 1901 ), which led to the development in Peru, according to historian Andreas Campomar, of “the most elegant and sophisticated football on the continent” ^[15] and the most powerful football rille team in the Andes region ^[16] .

In 1912, the Peruvian Football League was created, which took place every year, and in 1921 it broke up due to disputes between club members ^[17] . The following year , the Peruvian Football Federation (FPF) was established, and in 1926 the national championship was resumed ^[18] . In 1925, Peru joined the South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL). The team itself was formed only in 1927 due to financial problems ^[19] . At the South American Championship, the national team debuted in 1927 , where it spent its very first match: against the national team of Uruguay (0-4) ^[13] . The second match ended with a victory over Bolivia with a score of 3-2 ^[20] .

Peru participated in the first World Cup ^[21] . 1930s - the first golden period of Peruvian football ^[3] . In 1926, the second club was founded in Peru ^[22] . During the successful performances of national clubs, a pair of Peruvian players stood out. This group of players was named Rodillo Negro . The famous three players went there: Juan Valdivieso , Teodoro Fernandez and Carlos Alejandro Villanueva ^[23] . Sports historian Richard Witzig said that this was the most powerful three players in the whole world, because it combined innovation and efficiency ^[3] .

Peru and Rodillo Negro successfully performed at the 1936 Summer Olympics , won the first Bolivarian Games in 1938 and the South American Championship in 1939 ^{[24] [25]} . The following years were less successful for the national team. According to historian David Goldblatt, “despite all the obvious prerequisites for the growth of football, Peruvian football has disappeared” ^[26] . He attributes this sudden decline to repression of the Peruvian authorities in the 1940s and 1950s ^[26] . In 1957, Peru was not enough to reach the final stage of the 1958 World Cup in Sweden ^[27] .

A series of successful results in the late 1960s and culminating in the final stage of the 1970 World Cup in Mexico - the beginning of the second golden period for Peruvian football ^{[3] [28]} . The main factor in reaching the Mexican World Cup was considered to be a bunch of strikers Hugo Sotil and Teofilo Cubillas ^[29] . At the World Championships, the national team reached the quarter finals, where they lost to future champions - Brazil with a score of 2-4 ^[30] . The team received the Fair Play Award ^[31] . Five years later, Peru became the two-time winner of the America's Cup (just this year the cup was renamed from the South American Championship to the America's Cup). After that, the team twice successfully qualified in the final stages of the world championships . In 1978 , Argentina reached the second round, and in 1982 in Spain did not leave the group. After the mundial, this second period ended ^[32] .

After failing to qualify for the 1986 World Cup, the national team concentrated on the young Peruvian players of the Alliance . On December 8, 1987, the team was returning from the city of Pucallpa , from the next match of the national championship against the Deportivo Pucallpa club. Not flying just a few kilometers to the capital's airport, the plane crashed and crashed into the sea. The only survivor was the pilot of the aircraft. Among the dead were the head coach of the team Marcos Calderon , goalkeeper Jose Gonzalez Ganosa and the young club star Luis Antonio Escobar ^[33] . The national team failed qualifications for the world championships: in 1990 and 1994 . But at the 1997 America's Cup, the national team took fourth place and did not qualify for the 1998 World Cup because it lost to Chile by the difference in goals scored and goals conceded ^[34] . In 1999, the team won the Kirin Cup in Japan . Peru took 3rd place at the CONCACAF 2000 Gold Cup ^{[35] [36]} , which was attended by invited guest teams.

Since the beginning of the new century, the Peruvian team has been faced with difficulties in qualifying for the World Cup. Manuel Burga , who was president of the Federation of Peruvian Football in 2002 , was widely accused of unsatisfactory results and unwillingness to claim participation in the final stages of the World Cups in 2002 and 2006 . Burga became very popular among the local population ^{[37] [38]} . FIFA temporarily suspended the team from international matches at the end of 2008 , citing political interference ^[39] . Peru took last place for qualifications for the 2010 World Cup ^[40] . After that, the team began to rise. Already in July 2013 it took a record 19th place in the FIFA National Team Rankings ^[41] , but failed to qualify for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil ^[42] .

In 2018, the Peruvians were able to qualify for the World Cup , but could not reach the playoffs, having suffered two defeats from Denmark and France (0: 1), but then they defeated the Australian team (2: 0). For Peru, Andre Carrillo and Paolo Guerrero scored.

Peru's national football team plays in red and white: the colors of the national flag ^[43] . The first form kit selected was in 1936 : white shorts, white socks and white shirts with a distinctive red stripe that runs diagonally from the left shoulder to the right thigh and returns on the back from the right thigh to the left shoulder. This basic design has changed quite a bit over the years. Christopher Terpin, executive producer of National Public Radio in 2010, praised the uniform and named it the best form in the history of world championships. In it, he noted a simple but amazingly effective design ^[44] .

The first set of the national team was made for the South American Championship 1927 and consisted of a white and red striped T-shirt, white shorts and black socks ^[45] . The national team was forced to make an alternative form for the 1930 World Cup , because Peru met with Paraguay , who had a similar uniform ^[45] . The alternative version was different in that the shirt had a pure white color, but with a red collar. At the 1935 South American Championships , a horizontal red bar was added to the mold. According to the historian Pulgar-Vidal Otalora, the idea of ​​a diagonal strip came from football schools. Both teams were in white T-shirts and, in order to somehow differ, one of the teams put on a red belt diagonally ^[46] .

The national team produced its form with eight manufacturers. The first was Adidas in 1978 . Then there were contracts with Penalty (1981-82), again with Adidas (1983-85), Calvo Sportwear (1987), Power (1989-91), Diadora (1991-92), the local manufacturer is Polmer (1993-95), Umbro (1996-97) and the Peruvian company Walon Sport (1998-2010). Since 2010, Umbro has again become the main producer. Umbro has again produced recruitment teams since 2010 ^[47] .

The national team's traditional stadium is National in Lima , which seats about 45,000 spectators. ^[13] The original stadium of this place was built in 1923 . It was reconstructed three times. Last time July 24, 2011 ^[48] .

The original version was wooden and accommodated 6,000 spectators. Built by donations from the British, in honor of the centenary of independence from Spain ^[49] . The second reconstruction was commissioned by Peruvian President Manuel Odria and the stadium was reopened on October 27, 1952 ^[50] . The latest reconstruction included improvements to the playing field and stadium lighting and the inclusion of 375 VIP seats ^{[51] [52]} .

The team sometimes holds its matches also in other stadiums of Peru : “ Garcilaso de la Vega ” in Cuzco , “ Monumental ” in Lima and others ^{[53] [54]} . The last time the White and Reds played in an alternative stadium in 2012 against Chile at the Estadio Jorge Basadra in Tacna ^[55] .

World Championship

The Peruvian national team, by invitation, competed in the first world championship in 1930 , and has been participating in each qualification since 1958 . In addition to the first, Peru also played on three other mundials: 1970 , 1978 and 1982 . The result of the national team for 2014 is 35 wins, 30 draws and 59 losses. In the final stage - 4 wins, 3 draws and 8 losses (19 goals and 31 goals conceded) ^[20] . The first goal of Peru on the mundiales was scored by Luis de Souza Ferreira on July 14, 1930 against Romania. ^[56] Teofilo Cubillas is the best scorer of the “white-red” in the final stages of the world championships (10 goals in 13 matches) ^[57] .

America's Cup

The national team of Peru took part in the 31st America's Cup tournament (since 1927 ) and twice became its owner (in 1939 and 1975 ). In Peru, the tournament was held six times (in 1927 , 1935 , 1939 , 1953 , 1957 and 2004 ). The result of the national team in the tournament is 49 wins, 32 draws and 55 losses ^[20] . The author of the first goal of the national team in the tournament is Demetrio Neira , who scored against Bolivia on November 13, 1927 ^[45] . Three times Peruvian football players became the best scorers of the tournament: Teodoro Fernandez ( 1939 ), Eduardo Malasces ( 1983 ) and Paolo Guerrero ( 2011 ) ^[58] . The latter was also named a player of the tournament.

• Champion of South America (2): 1939 , 1975
• America's Silver Medalist (1): 2019
• America's Cup bronze medalist (6): 1927 , 1935 , 1949 , 1955 , 2011 , 2015
• Champion of the Bolivarian Games (6): 1938, 1947/48, 1961, 1973, 1985, 2001 (record)
• World Championship Quarter Finalist (2): 1970 , 1978

2016

2017

2018 World Cup

The qualifying tournament began on October 5, 2015 and ended on October 10, 2017. The four best teams reached the final of the World Cup, and the fifth team played butt games (at home and away) with a representative of Oceania .

As of March 29, 2017

And - games, B - wins, N - draws, P - losses, Goals - goals scored and goals conceded, ± - goal difference, O - points

The following players were called to the national team by head coach Ricardo Gareca to participate in the matches of the America's Cup 2019 , which was held in Brazil from June 14 to July 7, 2019 .

Games and goals as of July 7, 2019:

The Guards

1. Roberto Palacios (1992-2012) - 128 games, 19 goals
2. Hector Chumpitas (1965-1981) - 105 games, 3 goals
3. Jorge Soto (1992-2005) - 101 games, 9 goals

Top scorers

1. Jose Paolo Guerrero (2004—) - 39 goals, 97 games
2. Jefferson Farfan (2003—) - 27 goals, 95 games
3. Theofilo Cubillas (1968-1982) - 26 goals, 81 games
4. Theodoro Fernandez (1935-1947) - 24 goals, 32 games
5. Claudio Pizarro (1999—2016) - 20 goals, 85 games
6. Nolberto Solano (1994-2009) - 20 goals, 95 games

• - official site of the Peruvian national football team
• Peru team on FIFA website