Club Libertad
| Club Libertad emblem | |||
| Full name | Club Libertad | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | Gumarelo, Los Repolleros | ||
| Founded | July 30, 1905 | ||
| Ground | Estadio Dr. Nicolás Leoz | ||
| Capacity | 10,000 | ||
| Chairman |  Horacio Cartes | ||
| Manager |  Javier Torrente | ||
| League | Liga Paraguaya | ||
| 2009 Apertura | 2nd | ||
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The Club Libertad is a sports club based in the District Tuyucuá of the city of Asuncion, capital of Paraguay. Was founded on July 30, 1905 and played in the Paraguayan First Division.
Libertad is the third most victorious paraguayan football club, having won fourteen national titles, they also participated of several editions of the Copa Libertadores de America and the Copa Sudamericana, but without any success.
The club is known as the "Gumarelo" or "Repolleros.
History
In 1905, political instability ruled in Paraguay. A group of young men who arrived to Asunción through the bay in a ship named "Libertad" (liberty) led a triumphant revolution to take down the government who at that time was from the Partido Colorado (Colorado Party). The name of the ship that brought the young men who were part of the opposing political party (the liberal party) was an inspiration to Juan Manuel Sosa Escalada, who along with some friends, decided to found a new sports club named Club Libertad on July 30, 1905.
Since winning its first championship in 1910, Libertad has always been overshadowed by the two big clubs in Paraguay: Olimpia and Cerro Porteño, who together won most of the Paraguayan football national championships. Despite that, Libertad has confirmed the position of third "big" team in Paraguay by winning ten championships, one more than Club Guaraní which has nine titles. There has always been much controversy between the two clubs, since Guarani have always been considered the third team in terms of following in Paraguay, but Libertad are in third place as far as titles are concerned. Guarani still do draw larger crowds to their games, despite not having won the league title since 1984.
Libertad has always been considered a traditional club in the Paraguayan league and the relegation of the club to the second division in 1998 was very shocking. Two years later however, a new president took over the club and they were promoted back to the first division. Two years later in 2002, they won the Paraguayan league title and repeated the same feat in 2003. The success of the later years allowed Libertad to qualify for the Copa Libertadores and the Copa Sudamericana. They reached the semi-finals of the Copa Libertadores in 2006, and in 2007, Libertad reached the quarter-finals, where they lost to Boca Juniors.
Majority of Libertad's fans currently are the Elite class and young kids due to their current success.
Players
Current squad
As of August 23, 2009. Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Notable players
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Paraguay |
Argentina Brasil Colombia Uruguay
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Notable coaches
Honours
National
- Paraguayan First Division
- Paraguayan Second Division
- Winners (1): 2000
International
- Copa Libertadores de América: 9 appearances
- Semifinalists (2): 1977, 2006
- Copa Sudamericana: 5 appearances
- Quarterfinalists(1): 2003
Basketball
Libertad also has a basketball team participating in the Paraguayan Metropolitan Basketball League. They have won the Paraguayan championship nine times: 1958, 1972, 1974, 1977, 1979, 1986, 1987, 1990 and 2005.