Football quiz: test your knowledge of South American clubs

Boca Juniors have one of club football’s most famous kits. But why do they play in blue and yellow? Photograph: Diego Lima/AFP/Getty Images

1. Argentinian side Independiente have won the Copa Libertadores a record seven times, but how many finals have they lost?

   1. None

   2. One

   3. Three

   4. Eight

2. For which Argentinian team did Diego Maradona play the most games?

   1. Vélez Sarsfield

   2. Argentinos Juniors

   3. Boca Juniors

   4. Newell's Old Boys

3. Coach sackings are so common in Brazil that the CBF had to introduce rules to curb trigger-happy owners last year. With that in mind, how many clubs sacked journeyman manager Lisca in 2016?

   1. One

   2. Two

   3. Three

   4. Four

4. Notorious bad boy Gerardo Bedoya was sent off more than 40 times during his club career. How long did he last in his first game on the coaching staff of Independiente Santa Fe?

   1. Eight minutes

   2. 21 minutes

   3. 63 minutes

   4. 86 minutes

5. Only one club from Ecuador has ever won the Copa Libertadores. Who?

   1. Independiente del Valle

   2. Barcelona

   3. Emelec

   4. LDU Quito

6. Which club has had the most consecutive seasons in Brazil's top flight, Série A?

   1. Santos

   2. Palmeiras

   3. Flamengo

   4. São Paulo

7. Over to Paraguay, and what was remarkable about Salvador Cabañas' appearance in 12 de Octubre's win over Martín Ledesma in April 2012?

   1. It was his first competitive appearance since being shot in the head in 2010

   2. He had just served a six-match ban for spitting on an opponent, then scuffling with a police officer as he left the pitch

   3. He was 12 de Octubre's first player-manager

   4. It was Cabañas' professional debut aged 33

8. Cabañas scored 10 goals in the 2007 Copa Libertadores – who was the next player to get to double figures in a single edition of the tournament?

   1. Jô

   2. Neymar

   3. Fidel Martínez

   4. Gabriel Barbosa

9. How did Boca Juniors decide the colours of their iconic blue and yellow kit?

   1. The players decided to adopt the colours of the first boat that came into La Boca port, which turned out to be Swedish

   2. The colours were inspired by Julio Argentino Roca's favourite beach

   3. They adapted Genoa's kit, swapping out red for yellow to signify 'a new dawn for the Genovese'

   4. The club was founded by a sailor from Sussex who borrowed the colours from the historic county flag

10. Who was named as the South American club of the 20th century?

    1. Independiente

    2. Boca Juniors

    3. Flamengo

    4. Peñarol

Solutions

1:A - The club's success in major finals has earned them the nickname 'Rey de Copas' – King of Cups, 2:B - 'The Golden Boy' scored 116 goals in 166 games for his first club before leaving for Boca Juniors in 1981, 3:C - Lisca managed six different clubs between June 2016 and June 2018, with that run including a dismissal for assaulting his No2 at Paraná, 4:B - 'The Beast', who played 49 times for Colombia, once served a 15-match ban for elbowing an opponent and then kicking him in the head, 5:D - Los Merengues are one of six clubs to have won the Copa Libertadores (2008), the Copa Sudamericana (2009), and the Recopa Sudamericana (2009 and 2010), 6:C - The Mengão have not been relegated in 55 seasons, 7:A - Cabañas later said the attack was part of a plot to stop him firing Paraguay to the 2010 World Cup title, 8:D - 'Gabigol' bagged 11 goals during the 2021 tournament, but Flamengo lost in the final to Palmeiras, 9:A - According to legend, Boca originally played in black and white but were forced to change after losing a match against a team in similar colours to decide who would have the right to keep the kit, 10:D - Manyas have won the Copa Libertadores five times but their last title was in 1987. Goals from Neymar and Danilo denied the Uruguayan club a return to glory in the 2011 final against Santos

Scores

1. 5 and above.

   A solid effort – through on away goals

2. 8 and above.

   Gooooooooooooooooooool!

3. 0 and above.

   Hard luck – it's an early red card for you