Christmas Eve, 24 December 1889: in Rosario, Argentina, workers of a British railway found their own team. On 24 December 2026 Rosario Central turns 137 years old. It is the club of Kempes, Di María and the legendary "palomita".

A railway team

The founders worked for the Central Argentine Railway, the British-owned railway company. Thomas Mutton proposed the name Central Argentine Railway Athletic Club. The Scot Colin Bain Calder was elected president and stayed in the post for eleven years.

The team's first match was played in 1890 against the crew of a British ship passing through the port. The centre-forward was a boy of just eleven, Miguel Green, who later became the club's president. For years the club was closed, open only to people from the company.

A new name and the blue and yellow

In 1903 an extraordinary assembly opened the doors to everyone and the club took its Spanish name: Club Atlético Rosario Central. The colours that would last forever appeared in the same period. Since 1904 the team has worn blue and yellow vertical stripes.

The sources we checked do not explain why these two colours were chosen. What we do know is that the striped shirt is the club's trademark. It has carried the names of brands such as adidas, Topper, Puma, Kappa, Nike and Umbro, and since 2025 it has been made once again by Le Coq Sportif.

Stars on the crest

The first crest was born together with the new name. For the 75th anniversary in 1965 a laurel wreath was added, and in 1973 the shield was surrounded by a large "C". That was also when the first stars for league titles were added.

Over the years the stars multiplied: for the titles of 1980 and 1986-87 and for the 1995 Copa CONMEBOL. For the centenary in 1989 the crest was placed on a world map. In 2007 the club returned to the crest of the 1970s.

"Canallas" and "Leprosos"

Central's fans are called "Canallas", meaning "scoundrels". According to the most common version, in the 1920s the team refused to play a charity match against Newell's for a leprosy clinic. Newell's fans shouted "canallas" at them and they answered "leprosos", but the origin remains uncertain.

The team's home is the Gigante de Arroyito, where the first match was played in November 1926, a 4-2 win over Newell's. In 2007 the cartoonist and fan Roberto Fontanarrosa designed a logo that spelled the nickname "canaya", the way it is pronounced in Rosario.

The "palomita", Kempes and Di María

In 1971 Central became the first team from outside Buenos Aires to win an AFA national championship. In the semi-final against Newell's, Aldo Poy scored with a diving header, the legendary "palomita". League titles followed in 1973, 1980 and 1986-87, plus the Copa Argentina in 2018 and the Copa de la Liga in 2023.

The shirt has been worn by Mario Kempes, top scorer at the 1978 World Cup, and César Luis Menotti, who came through the academy. The all-time top scorer is Harry Hayes with 221 goals. Today the captain is Ángel Di María, a product of the club.

In November 2025 the league declared Central champion because it finished first in the year's combined table. The decision was taken with the season still under way and caused a fierce controversy in Argentina.

Celebrate with us

One hundred and thirty-seven years after the railway workers, Rosario's blue and yellow are still among the most recognisable colours in South America. And every Christmas Eve, the city has two reasons to celebrate.

Happy birthday, Rosario Central! May the Gigante always be full and may the "palomita" have many successors.

See our collectible jerseys at sportarena.gr.

Photo: The Gigante de Arroyito in Rosario – Pablo D. Flores, Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.