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From cocaine cartels & Copa Libertadores finals to a violent relegation & financial ruin - The story of America de Cali
The drop to Categoria B is the latest blow to the Colombian giants, who in the last 15 years have been emasculated by the 'war on drugs' and financial mismanagement
Dec 21, 2011 12:00:00 PM
JR Miranda
SPECIAL
By Daniel Edwards | South American Football Editor
The scenes on Saturday night in and around Cali's Estadio Pascal Guerrero were, to any football fan, shocking and almost pathetic in their sadness. Fans of fallen giants America de Cali openly battled riot police in the stands as their team were condemned to relegation for the first time in their history, before taking their fight to the city streets; targeting cars, businesses, residences and any other tangible object on which they could vent their frustration.
The Diablos lost a tense penalty shoot-out with Patriotas F.C to go down to Colombia's Categoria B, ending an unbroken stay in the top flight which stretches back 63 years. They become the second South American icon relegated in 2011 after Argentina's River Plate; and just like the Millonarios, their fall from grace had little to do ultimately with events on the field.
A founding member of the Colombian national league in 1948, America were little more than an also-ran in the early days, tasting little success. This was to change, however, in the 1980s, when the team suddenly exploded to the top of national and South American football. Under the tutelage of Gabriel Ochoa Uribe, the team became one of the greatest ever seen on the continent.
Five titles were won in a row between 1982 and 1986, nine overall in the club's golden age between 1979 and 1997. Four Copa Libertadores finals were also reached in that period; all unsuccessful and including, ironically, two defeats against River Plate at the last hurdle. Argentines Ricardo Gareca and Julio Falcioni were persuaded to come north, as was Paraguayan icon Roberto Cabanas to join native stars such as Oscar Cordoba and Wilmer Cabrera. Behind the success, however, there was a dark shadow.
There were always questions over how an institution which averaged less than 10,000 spectators in the imposing Pascal Guerrero could afford to stay at the top for so long, and the answer could be found in the boardroom. America were being bankrolled by the infamous Cali cocaine cartel, who laundered millions of dollars through the club as they looked to hide the staggering profits made in the heyday of the Colombian drug trade in the same period. The nephew of one of the cartel's most infamous capos, Miguel Rodriguez, also claims that their influence went further than just financial backing.
"So an almost invincible team was formed that waltzed through every stadium in Colombia. This was thanks not just to the great players, but also the money that was a product of drug trafficking, which also influenced certain results when they started to pay referees to favour the team," Fernando Rodriguez told reporters while awaiting extradition for his own narco charges. He also admitted that this treatment was not just confined to the Colombian league.
"In the America de Mexico vs. America [Copa Libertadores] match, the officials were invited to a restaurant and treated like stars, all the drinks they wanted they had and they were extremely pleased."
These cocaine and narcodollar-fuelled days were to come to an end. Bill Clinton's escalation of the 'War on Drugs' in the United States coincided with the assassination of Colombian defensive icon Andres Escobar by individuals linked to the Medellin cartel in 1994, and one year later the first nail in the coffin was driven home by the passing of Executive Order 12978.
Nicknamed the 'Clinton List', this directive decreed that companies linked with the drug trade, including America, were to have all their US assets frozen, and other organisations were ordered not to do business with them. The club fell into financial ruin, unable to attract sponsors and investors wary of being involved with an organisation that had been so effectively controlled by the traffickers who were now public enemy No. 1. They tried to scrape together money from their paltry attendances and player sales while at the same time removing the cancer of the cartels from the boardroom.
Seventeen years later America still find themselves on this list, despite pressure from fans and other figures in Cali to regularise the club's affairs and remove their pariah status. The effects have been seen on the pitch. Since 2000 the Diablos have lifted four championships - although two came after the switch to short, two-championship seasons - and in the last two years have not been close to the eight-team play-offs which constitute the end of season title fight. Relegation appears the natural conclusion of a process which, in spite of sporadic success, has been slowly dragging the once great side into mediocrity and ignominy.
In order to bounce back, America could do worse than look at former rivals River. The Millo have spent money sparingly, selling key youngsters and bringing on the next generation while benefiting from the fanaticism of former idols such as Fernando Cavenaghi to bring them back home. Halfway through the season River are in second place, an automatic promotion spot, and have high hopes of making an instant return to the top flight in June 2012.
America's case, however, is if anything even more desperate. There has already been one glimpse of light; former Colombia coach Eduardo Lara looks set to take over at the helm, determined to lead his home-town team away from the abyss.
But emaciated by 17 years of sanctions and without the loyal fanbase of the Argentines who, even in the Nacional B, can boast the highest attendances of any club in the nation, the Diablos will have a mammoth task to turn round a fate which has seen them drop from the pinnacle of South American football to the depths of Categoria B.
By Daniel Edwards | South American Football Editor
The scenes on Saturday night in and around Cali's Estadio Pascal Guerrero were, to any football fan, shocking and almost pathetic in their sadness. Fans of fallen giants America de Cali openly battled riot police in the stands as their team were condemned to relegation for the first time in their history, before taking their fight to the city streets; targeting cars, businesses, residences and any other tangible object on which they could vent their frustration.
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The Diablos lost a tense penalty shoot-out with Patriotas F.C to go down to Colombia's Categoria B, ending an unbroken stay in the top flight which stretches back 63 years. They become the second South American icon relegated in 2011 after Argentina's River Plate; and just like the Millonarios, their fall from grace had little to do ultimately with events on the field.
A founding member of the Colombian national league in 1948, America were little more than an also-ran in the early days, tasting little success. This was to change, however, in the 1980s, when the team suddenly exploded to the top of national and South American football. Under the tutelage of Gabriel Ochoa Uribe, the team became one of the greatest ever seen on the continent.
Five titles were won in a row between 1982 and 1986, nine overall in the club's golden age between 1979 and 1997. Four Copa Libertadores finals were also reached in that period; all unsuccessful and including, ironically, two defeats against River Plate at the last hurdle. Argentines Ricardo Gareca and Julio Falcioni were persuaded to come north, as was Paraguayan icon Roberto Cabanas to join native stars such as Oscar Cordoba and Wilmer Cabrera. Behind the success, however, there was a dark shadow.
A Trip into Hell | America players are devastated after Saturday's relegation nightmare
There were always questions over how an institution which averaged less than 10,000 spectators in the imposing Pascal Guerrero could afford to stay at the top for so long, and the answer could be found in the boardroom. America were being bankrolled by the infamous Cali cocaine cartel, who laundered millions of dollars through the club as they looked to hide the staggering profits made in the heyday of the Colombian drug trade in the same period. The nephew of one of the cartel's most infamous capos, Miguel Rodriguez, also claims that their influence went further than just financial backing.
"So an almost invincible team was formed that waltzed through every stadium in Colombia. This was thanks not just to the great players, but also the money that was a product of drug trafficking, which also influenced certain results when they started to pay referees to favour the team," Fernando Rodriguez told reporters while awaiting extradition for his own narco charges. He also admitted that this treatment was not just confined to the Colombian league.
"In the America de Mexico vs. America [Copa Libertadores] match, the officials were invited to a restaurant and treated like stars, all the drinks they wanted they had and they were extremely pleased."
As well as the carrot dangled in front of referees, there was also a deadly stick right behind. Colombian football endured one of its darkest days on November 15, 1989 - the day of a clasico between rivals America and Atletico Nacional of Medellin - both suspected of being involved with the cartels. Shortly after the match, linesman Alvaro Ortega was gunned down in a bloody realisation of a threat made a year before.
Referee Armando Perez had been kidnapped by a group claiming to represent six teams in the top division infiltrated by drug gangs, to send the message later relayed by the thankfully unharmed official that "those who do not honestly fulfil their duties ... will be wiped off the map."These cocaine and narcodollar-fuelled days were to come to an end. Bill Clinton's escalation of the 'War on Drugs' in the United States coincided with the assassination of Colombian defensive icon Andres Escobar by individuals linked to the Medellin cartel in 1994, and one year later the first nail in the coffin was driven home by the passing of Executive Order 12978.
Nicknamed the 'Clinton List', this directive decreed that companies linked with the drug trade, including America, were to have all their US assets frozen, and other organisations were ordered not to do business with them. The club fell into financial ruin, unable to attract sponsors and investors wary of being involved with an organisation that had been so effectively controlled by the traffickers who were now public enemy No. 1. They tried to scrape together money from their paltry attendances and player sales while at the same time removing the cancer of the cartels from the boardroom.
| "It is a challenge I want to take on because as a Vallecaucano it hurts to see the Rojo go through this and I want to bring them back to the A" - Local boy Lara will try to revive America
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Seventeen years later America still find themselves on this list, despite pressure from fans and other figures in Cali to regularise the club's affairs and remove their pariah status. The effects have been seen on the pitch. Since 2000 the Diablos have lifted four championships - although two came after the switch to short, two-championship seasons - and in the last two years have not been close to the eight-team play-offs which constitute the end of season title fight. Relegation appears the natural conclusion of a process which, in spite of sporadic success, has been slowly dragging the once great side into mediocrity and ignominy.
In order to bounce back, America could do worse than look at former rivals River. The Millo have spent money sparingly, selling key youngsters and bringing on the next generation while benefiting from the fanaticism of former idols such as Fernando Cavenaghi to bring them back home. Halfway through the season River are in second place, an automatic promotion spot, and have high hopes of making an instant return to the top flight in June 2012.
America's case, however, is if anything even more desperate. There has already been one glimpse of light; former Colombia coach Eduardo Lara looks set to take over at the helm, determined to lead his home-town team away from the abyss.
But emaciated by 17 years of sanctions and without the loyal fanbase of the Argentines who, even in the Nacional B, can boast the highest attendances of any club in the nation, the Diablos will have a mammoth task to turn round a fate which has seen them drop from the pinnacle of South American football to the depths of Categoria B.
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