Unbelievable! A curse with cats?
There was a curse that affected one of the most famous clubs in Argentina and that is about cats...
On March 25, 1903, Racing Club of Avellaneda was born, in the south of the city Buenos Aires (Argentina). It is considered one of the "big 5" in the country, due to its passionate fans and its glorious history. Just a few meters from that club, is its staunch rival, Independiente. Only 300 meters separate two the clubs with one of the most important rivalries in the world.
Both stadiums are only 300 meters apart.
Although everyone knows that Boca and River are the most important clubs in Argentina, in the 1960s, things were very different. Independiente was the first Argentine team to win the Copa Libertadores. The "Rojo" won consecutively in the 1964 and 1965 editions, defeating the most important teams from Uruguay, Nacional, and Peñarol in the finals. Thanks to those victories, Independiente earned the right to play the Intercontinental against the European champion. On both occasions, they faced Inter from Italy and both times, they lost.
In 1966, Racing (its staunch rival) had a great campaign in the Argentine tournament, becoming champion with only 1 loss in 38 games and therefore, qualified for the Copa Libertadores. The following year, "La Academia" (nickname for Racing), won the Copa Libertadores title after beating Nacional (Uruguay). But not only that, but they also beat Scottish Celtic in the Intercontinental and thus became the first Argentine team to be crowned world champion.
Racing Club was the first Argentine team to win the Intercontinental and to become world champion
Legend has it that Racing's achievement angered its arch-rival so much that one night, some Independiente fans approached Racing's stadium and buried 7 dead cats in one of the goals. It is said that the person who took care of the Racing stadium was actually a fan of Independiente and that is why he let those people in. From then on, the Racing curse began. "La Academia" was a total of 35 years without being champion of the Argentine tournament and, to date, they have not even managed to reach the Final of the Copa Libertadores. They even were relegated to the second division in 1983.
In 1983, Racing was relegated to the second division while Independiente was champion of Argentine football.
The paranoia due to bad luck was such that in 1998 they decided to perform an exorcism in the club's stadium. A priest poured holy water all over the ground. Only in 2001, did Racing manage to break the curse and obtained the title of Argentine football champion. It is believed that for that, they had to unearth the 7 cats before.
In 2001, Racing broke the curse and became champion of the Argentine league after 35 years of waiting.
On the other hand, Independiente lived its glory years. They won 4 consecutive Libertadores between 1972 and 1975 and even obtained his long-awaited title of world champion, after beating Juventus in 1973. The icing on the cake was obtaining the title of champion in Argentina, after beating Racing by 4-0. Interestingly, currently, Independiente has 7 Copa Libertadores, the same amount as the cats of the curse.
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