The Strongest is Bolivia

If anyone asks me what is the most traditional thing of La Paz, I will say The Strongest. This is the team of the people. The Strongest is a club full of cups (37 in total), always fighting the first places. For many people The Strongest is their lifes, they really love the colors of the shirt. We are very different from the other clubs and teams. Our pasion is unique, now I can afirm that our phrase: "Si no lo sientes, no lo entiendes'' is completly true. The Strongest is Bolivia.

Our Home

We have our own sports club, located in Achumani. We have our own stadium "Rafael Mendoza Castellon" with a capacity for 14000 people, also in Achumani. We are the only club of Bolivia with an own stadium and this local tournment we are going to play there because the stadium of La Paz is being refactionated. Our sports club also contain a pool, a restaurant, 8 tenis fields, 5 raquet fields, 2 futsal fields, sauna, an ultimate generation gym, a beach volley field, a concentration hotel for the players and in the future we are going to have a spermarket and a gas station. This is our home for all of us, beginning from the players and finishing with the fans.

 

 

The Fans (Hooligans)

The Strongest is the biggest team in Bolivia so it deserves a very good and huge audience, and we have it. The Strongest has many fans in all Bolivia, especially in La Paz. This club also has many fans in different cities of the world. About 12000 people assist to every game of The Strongest, but obviously if there is an important game about 35000 people go to the stadium. The fans of The Strongest are characterized by never leaving the team alone, they are present in the good moments and especially in the bad moments. They always support the players, they do not reject them. The most famous, huge and important group of fans (hooligans) is La Gloriosa Ultra Sur 34. This is a group of people (fans of The Strongest) that are always present in the stadium, located in the south curve of the soccer field. They arrive one hour before the game and the stay 30 minutes after the game. They prepare a party in the stadium, putting flags with messages, playing the drums,hypes and cornets, singing songs of the team and the most beautiful part: prepare the reception of the team with fireworks, confeti, black and yellow smoke, very big flags and paper rolls. This group is composed by 2000 members approximately. La Gloriosa Ultra Sur is divided in small groups, some of them are called: Los De Adentro, Lealtad Aurinegra, Villa 34, La Fiebre Aurinegra, La Banda De La Tapa, Tigres Del Infierno, Los Infieles, El Fortin 34, Disturbio Sur, La Hermandad, B.A.R.A 34, Tigresas 34 and Area 34. All these groups are located in different places of the south curve but all of them are part of La Gloriosa Ultra Sur. This group also has subsidiares in all the cities of Bolivia, so when The Strongest play away, it always has support of many fans.

 

 

 

The Team

We are forming a new team for this season. Many of our players (about ten) left the club to go to play to teams outside Bolivia, because they gave a very good impression on the last season. Also we brought a new coach from Argentina (Néstor Craviotto) becuase the last one left the club because he received better offer from other teams. We brought five new players, most of them are national. Now our team is composed by 27 players. 24 are national and only 3 are foreign. Some of our most famous players are: Daniel Vaca ( golakeeper of The Strongest and the national team and second captain of the team), Fernando Martelli (one of our last additions to our team, he is from Brazil and he leaders our defense). Nelvin Soliz (a young midfielder that is seven years in the club he is a simbol of the club). Alejandro Chumacero (our best midfielder, with only 22 years he is the third captain of the team and he is one of the players that has more fans). Raul Castro (a new discovered talent, he played only in the amateur league until The Strongest added him six months ago, now he shows his brillant game in the midfield). Ernesto Cristaldo (a paraguayan player that can play in all the positions and he always surprise us with his long distance shot). Pablo Escobar (our best player and a historic man of the club, he is the captain and number 10 of the team). Rodrigo Ramallo (a young forward that came back to The Strongest after one year, he knows how to score goals).

 

An old team of The Strongest

 

 

 

The actual team of The Strongest

 

The Biggest One

The Strongest is the biggest team of Bolivia. This club was founded in 1908, so now it has 106 years on the first division of Bolivia. This soccer team is the only one of La Paz that never descended to the second division of soccer of Bolivia, and we have to take in count that it is the ancient one. This club has a big history, full of victories and happy memories. Beginning from their players, their sports club, their fans and their form of playing in the soccer field. Actually their are passing through a great moment, we got three championships in a row and a fourth the next year. We made excellent participations in three Libertadores cup, qualifing to the knockout phase. We are not passing a very good time in the aspect of money, but the players and coach understood it and they did not care because their love to the colors of the team is bigger than their love to money. Now it is beggining a new season and the players have to train and prepare for the tournment of Bolivia and the Libertadores cup next year. The Strongest will never play alone or in silence.