THE CLUB

THE JERSEY

The Boca jersey is more than just a simple piece of sporting attire. It is the treasure of each fan (“hincha”) who ask that their players sweat for them until their last drop. It is the sacred cloak for which hundreds of songs have been created in its honor. It is the symbol that unites all the xeneizes scattered around the world. It is the blood, soul, and heart of a fan with unconditional love for Boca. It is that which has been shown off by idols for more than a century of fervor and passion; it is the jersey of Boca.

The jersey of Boca has suffered incessant modification throughout its history. Its colors changed only during the first two years of its life, but after 1907 the blue and gold have remained ingrained in the skin of the xeneizes until today.

According to history, shortly after the founding of the club, the pink color of the first jersey was rapidly removed due to the taunting of rival teams. The Farenga brothers, two of the five founders of Boca, asked their sister Manuela to draw up a new model. Hand-stiched, it was the color white with three wide vertical black stripes. However, as this design was also not met with much favor amongst the members of the club, its’ use lasted for a very short time. Before the end of the year, Boca had a new jersey, this time of an entirely light blue color. However, that next year, when Boca played a match against Nottingham de Almagro, whose uniform was very similar, the teams bet the continued use of the jersey on the result of the match. Boca lost the match and returned to using their black and white jersey, which now had additional thin black stripes as well as a collar and buttons.

In 1907 the team made the decision to elect new colors, though they were far from agreement on what those colors should be. As a result of this indecision, Juan Brichetto had the idea of going to the port of La Boca and using the colors of the flag of the first boat that passed. The rest of the club accepted the idea and the group headed for the puente dos of the port. The first boat to appear was the Swedish “Drottning Sophia,” whose blue and gold colors finished in the hearts of the xeneizes.

The first jersey with these colors was not as we know it today, nor that which marked so many glorious years. It was a blue jersey with a gold diagonal band from the right to left hand side of the jersey. Soon after, in 1913, when Boca played in the first division, they began to use the jersey that still accompanies them today, despite its many variations in shades of blue throughout time.

After 1922 and until 1935, they used a bright light blue, with a lace-up collar and the traditional yellow stripe. In 1936 they returned to the use of the dark blue jersey with crew neck until 1981, the gold horizontal stripe across the chest remained. During those 45 years, the only variations were made in 1940, when they changed to a button collar, and in 1955, when they wore the shield of the Argentinian Football Association as a symbol of their championship the previous year.

Beginning in 1981, the design of the jersey began to vary. In that year, it had four yellow stars on the side of the heart of the player (left), each with the initials of the club’s official title (CABJ). Additionally, for the first time, each sleeve had two gold stripes from the neck to cuff. In 1983, the jersey had advertising across its chest for the first time in the teams’ history: Vinos Maravilla was Boca’s first sponsor.

Afterward, year-by-year, the sponsor was changed. In 1995 the jersey added a new color, white. The white was used for two fine, horizontal lines, which separated the blue from yellow on both sides of the trademark horizontal yellow stripe. However, the members of the club did not approve of this decision, and pointed out that club Statute specified that the jersey “would be blue with a horizontal gold stripe.” The next year the white stripes were eliminated indefinitely. From then on, despite many new designs suggested, the jersey would always keep the same colors and club’s initials.

The socks and shorts of the Boca uniform have also known many different models throughout the teams’ history. They have appeared throughout history in all blue, all yellow, and other varying combinations. Though they always kept their blue color throughout, the gold addition mutated in size and appearance. One unusual pair of shorts once a part of the Boca uniform were those worn in the beginning of the 1970’s: in front they were all yellow and in back all blue.

Many different models and designs have passed, but the jersey of Boca will always be marked in the skin of the xeneizes and the players who defend them Sunday to Sunday. They will also remain embedded in the skin of the fans who dream of being players and carry the jersey in their hearts.