On 12 October 1916, the day that marks Columbus's arrival in the Americas, a group of students in Mexico City merged two school teams into one. On 12 October 2027 Club América turn 111 years old. It is the story of a shirt that began as an old button-up top and of a club that became the most successful in Mexico.

Two schools, one team

In January 1916 pupils at the Mascarones college had formed a team called Récord. Its driving force was Rafael Garza Gutiérrez, just 13 years old, together with his cousin Germán Núñez Cortina.

The second team, Colón, belonged to the Marist school La Perpetua. Its coach, Eugenio Cenoz, proposed a merger to make them more competitive, and on 12 October the two teams became one.

Why "América"

The name was proposed by Pedro "Cheto" Quintanilla and approved unanimously. Since the team was born on the day that honours Columbus's arrival in the New World, "América" was a perfect fit.

From 1918 to 1920 the team was temporarily called Unión, after other Marist school teams joined it. It then returned to the name it carries to this day.

A cream shirt and navy trousers

According to the club's official history, Garza Gutiérrez wore an old cream long-sleeved shirt with buttons. The navy blue trousers came from his father's wardrobe, cut off at the knee, and a family tailor stitched the word "Récord" on the back.

These colours passed on to América and gave it the nickname "Azulcremas", the blue-and-creams. Yellow arrived gradually: a yellow shirt is recorded in 1967-68 and it became common in the 1970s.

In 1981 the team switched to a brighter yellow, with a "V" design on the chest. For the 110th anniversary in 2026, a commemorative cream shirt with navy details and a retro crest was released.

A continent on the crest, eagles in the stands

Quintanilla also designed the first crest: a map of the American continent in blue and cream, with the letters "C" for Club and "A" for América. The crest has changed a few times, most recently in 2010, but the map and the initials have stayed.

The old nicknames were "Cremas" and "Millonetas". On 19 September 1981 the team presented its new name at the Estadio Azteca: "Águilas", the Eagles.

Titles, legends and a historic three-peat

The first official title was the 1920 Copa Tower, won 1-0 against Asturias. In 1959 the club was bought by Emilio Azcárraga Milmo's television group, and from 1966 its home became the Estadio Azteca, which opened with a 2-2 draw against Torino.

The club counts 16 league titles, a Mexican record, although some dispute how they are counted. In 2023-24 it won three titles in a row, the Apertura 2023, Clausura 2024 and Apertura 2024, something no team had achieved in the era of two tournaments a year.

Cristóbal Ortega holds the record with 711 appearances, while Luís Roberto Alves "Zague" and Cuauhtémoc Blanco are the top scorers. Today the Eagles play in Liga MX, where in 2025-26 they reached the quarter-finals of the Clausura 2026.

Celebrate with us

From a cream shirt and cut-off trousers to the packed stadiums of Mexico, América have never forgotten where they started. Happy 111th birthday, Águilas!

See our collectible jerseys at sportarena.gr.

Photo: América v León at the Estadio Azteca – FromMorningToMidnight, Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC0 1.0.