"To Be Worth A Potosí": Football In The Mythical Land Of Riches

[Tikka Mezzala]

Silver, Altitude and Nacional Potosi

 

 

The Liga de Futbol Profesional Boliviano (Bolivia's top league) is the least reputable amongst South America's top-flights. Languishing in fifteenth place in the reputation standings, three places lower than the second least-reputable premier division (Venezuela), it's fair to say that there is much work to do for the Bolivian Football Federation (FBF). 

 

At international level the country does have a title to its name: the 1963 Copa America; a tournament it hosted. They had to wait over thirty years to reach another Copa America final, however, doing so in 1997 where they lost to Brazil (again as hosts). The country has qualified for three World Cups (1930, 1950, 1994), but has missed out on the last six tournaments. No Bolivian club side has managed to add international prestige to the country's footballing history books. 

 

The domestic league has traditionally been dominated by Bolivar and their La Paz rivals, The Strongest. Clubs from Santa Cruz and Cochabamba have also chipped in with domestic titles, but only once has the Bolivian Championship been won by a team from the country's old colonial stronghold, Potosi. That came in the 2007 edition when Real Potosi emerged victorious in the opening stage championship. 

 

 

Potosi was a very important city during the colonial period. Much of the silver that enriched the Spanish empire was mined from the bowels of the earth around the city. If you read the famous history book The Open Veins of Latin America, you will find descriptions of Potosi as a city "paved with silver". It is also one of the highest cities in the world, sitting at 15,827 ft above sea level. This makes it a difficult place to play football for the unacclimatised. 

 

 

Nacional Potosi is one of the oldest clubs in all of Bolivia. Founded in 1942, it has primarily played in the country's second tier. It has never won the Bolivian Championship, unlike its city rival Real Potosi. As a club situated in such an historic city in a country that is waiting to be sparked into life, I have chosen Nacional Potosi to begin my Football Manager 2020 career. Instead of silver, I want the club to unearth talented young Bolivian football players, and to live up to its altitude by scaling the heights of Bolivian and South American football. 

 

Some Preliminaries:

 

 

 

 

Above is what I have to work with and towards at the beginning of my tenure. Let's hope we have a season "worth a Potosi!"