Everyone’s Team: Boca Juniors 1969 : Di Stefano & the Resurgence of Argentinian Football

In July 1969 Argentina was at a footballing crossroads. The national team’s failure to qualify for the 1970 Mexico World Cup led to a crisis about the state of the game with many wondering how they could ever recover. The answer proved to be right under their noses — Real Madrid legend Alfredo Di Stefano had arrived at the country’s biggest club, Boca Juniors, at the end of 1968 and was soon installed as team manager. Pairing Argentinian style with European substance, the result was one of Boca’s greatest ever teams, a first signpost on the road towards Argentina’s 1978 World Cup triumph. Boca historian Leandro Cordobez revisits the iconic ‘69 season to tell the story of a period of Argentine football rarely explored by the English-speaking world. In an age before entrenched rivalries, Boca''s performances drew admiration from supporters of all clubs. They were lightning quick in attack yet resolute in defence, above all they played the game with an old-fashioned sporting spirit in stark contrast to the cynicism that had become associated with Argentinian football. By season''s end the champions of 1969 were more than just a great Boca Juniors team, they were El Equipo de Todos — Everyone''s Team.