Universidad de Chile

Club Universidad de Chile is a professional football club in Chile based in Santiago. The club's current concessionaire, Azul Azul S.A., states that it was founded on 24 May 1927; however, various authors and researchers indicate that the founding date corresponds to 25 March 1911.

Registered in the Asociación de Football de Santiago (AFS) since 1912 as «Club Atlético Internado», the club was part of a process of merger with other sports branches between 1927 and 1928, joining the so-called «Club Universitario de Deportes de Chile», also known as «Universitario». Then, from 1934, it became the football branch of the «Club Deportivo de la Universidad de Chile», under the aegis of the university of the same name, with which it remained linked until 1980, after being constituted as the «Corporación de Fútbol Profesional de la Universidad de Chile» (Corfuch). After the bankruptcy of the latter in 2006, the club has been administered since 2007 by the public limited company «Azul Azul S.A.» under a concession system. The colour that identifies the club is blue. Meanwhile, its crest depicts the image of a chuncho (or little owl), whose origin goes back to the Club Náutico Universitario, one of the institutions that merged with Internado F. C. in 1928 to give rise to Universitario.

In professional football, it is the team with the second-most Primera División titles, with 18. It has also won 5 Copa Chile titles, 1 Supercopa de Chile and 1 Segunda División title. In the amateur era, meanwhile, the Serie B back-to-back championships in 1936 and 1937 stand out, in addition to various AFS titles. In 1999 it achieved the record of 33 consecutive matches without losing within a single edition of the national Primera División championship.

Internationally, it has been the only Chilean team to win the Copa Sudamericana, in 2011, undefeated and as the best champion in the history of the tournament and the second of those organised by the Confederación Sudamericana de Fútbol, with a record of 89%. This title, added to the Torneo de Apertura and the Torneo de Clausura, allowed it to finish the year 2011 with the first treble of official titles in the history of Chilean football, as well as remaining undefeated as the away side during that season, both nationally and internationally. In addition, it has four Copa Libertadores de América semi-finals: in 1970, 1996, 2010 and 2012.

The club plays its home matches at the Estadio Nacional Julio Martínez Prádanos, a state-owned venue located in the commune of Ñuñoa and with a capacity of 48,665 spectators. From its origins the club has had youth categories and since 2008 it has had a women's football affiliate that takes part in the Primera División of Chilean women's football, in both the adult and youth categories. Its traditional rivals are Colo-Colo, against whom it has played the so-called «Superclásico del fútbol chileno» since 1938, and Universidad Católica, against whom it has played the Clásico Universitario since 1937.

In June, July, August, September and October 2012, according to the statistics of the world club ranking compiled by the International Federation of Football History and Statistics, Universidad de Chile ranked as the second-best team in the world, the best position in its history. During 2012, Universidad de Chile was considered the best football team in the Americas according to the Conmebol ranking.