Deportes La Serena
| Full name | Club de Deportes La Serena S.A.D.P. | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nicknames | Papayeros Granates Club Deportes Gigante de La Cuarta | ||
| Founded | 9 December 1955 | ||
| Ground | Estadio La Portada La Serena, Chile | ||
| Capacity | 18,243[1] | ||
| Chairman | Milko Leguas | ||
| Manager | Felipe Gutiérrez | ||
| League | Liga de Primera | ||
| 2025 | Liga de Primera, 13th of 16 | ||
| Website | www | ||
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Club de Deportes La Serena is a Chilean professional football club based in the city of La Serena, Coquimbo Region. Founded on 9 December 1955, the club currently competes in the Primera División, the highest tier of Chilean football, following its promotion as Primera B champions in 2024.[2]
The club plays its home matches at the Estadio La Portada, located in La Serena. Its traditional colours are red and white, and the team is commonly known as Los Granates (The Garnets), in reference to the dark red colour traditionally used on its shirts. La Serena maintains a long-standing rivalry with neighbouring Coquimbo Unido, with matches between the two clubs known as the Clásico de la Cuarta Región.[3]
Deportes La Serena has spent much of its history in the top two divisions of Chilean football. The club's principal national honour is the Copa Chile, which it won in 1960 after defeating Santiago Wanderers in the final. It has also won the Chilean second-tier championship on several occasions, most recently in 2024, when the club secured promotion to Primera División with several rounds remaining.[2]
History
Early years
Deportes La Serena was founded on 9 December 1955, following the success of the La Serena city selection in Chilean amateur football. The local representative side had won national amateur championships in 1949, 1951 and 1954, achievements that encouraged the creation of a professional club for the city. La Serena was admitted to the Campeonato de Ascenso for the 1956 season, becoming the first professional club from northern Chile.[4]
The club made its professional debut in 1956 with a goalless draw against Unión La Calera. It finished level at the top of the second-tier standings but lost the deciding match to Universidad Católica and ended the season as runner-up. Promotion arrived the following year, when La Serena won the 1957 Segunda División championship after defeating Santiago Morning, earning a place in the Primera División for the first time.[4]
La Serena immediately established itself as a competitive top-flight side. In its debut Primera División season in 1958, the club finished third, only one point behind champions Santiago Wanderers, while Carlos Verdejo finished as the league's leading scorer with 23 goals.[4] Two years later, La Serena achieved the first major national honour in its history by winning the Copa Chile. After defeating Universidad Católica 6–0 in the quarter-finals and Audax Italiano 3–2 in the semi-finals, the club beat Santiago Wanderers 4–1 in the final.[5]
Promotion and stability
Over the following decades, La Serena alternated between the first and second divisions. The club won its second second-tier championship in 1987, securing promotion after prevailing in a final-stage competition that included regional rivals Coquimbo Unido.[4] During its subsequent spell in Primera División, La Serena qualified for the Pre-Libertadores play-offs in both 1988 and 1989, although it did not reach the Copa Libertadores.[4]
Another Segunda División title followed in 1996 under manager Gustavo Huerta, returning the club to the top flight.[4] La Serena remained a frequent participant in Primera División during the following decade and produced one of its strongest modern campaigns in the 2005 Clausura, reaching the semi-finals before being eliminated by Universidad Católica.[4]
The club also enjoyed a prolonged period of relative stability under Víctor Hugo Castañeda, who managed the team between 2005 and 2010. In the 2009 Clausura, La Serena again reached the championship semi-finals, where it faced Colo-Colo.[6]
Relegation and return
La Serena was relegated from Primera División in 2012 and subsequently spent several seasons in Primera B. The club experienced an extended period outside the top flight before mounting a successful promotion challenge in 2019 under manager Luis Marcoleta. La Serena reached the promotion final against Deportes Temuco in January 2020 and, after a goalless draw, won the penalty shoot-out to secure its return to Primera División after seven years.[7]
The club remained in the top division through 2022 before being relegated again. After two seasons in Primera B, La Serena produced a dominant campaign in 2024 under Erwin Durán. The team led the standings for much of the season and secured both the championship and promotion with four matches remaining after defeating Deportes Recoleta 1–0 at the Estadio La Portada, while Barnechea lost to Deportes Antofagasta.[2]
La Serena completed the 2024 campaign with only two defeats, while Argentine forward Lionel Altamirano finished as the competition's leading scorer with 24 goals in 30 appearances.[4] The title was the club's fourth second-tier championship, following those won in 1957, 1987 and 1996, and secured its return to Primera División for the 2025 season.
Stadium
Deportes La Serena plays at home at Estadio La Portada, premises owned by the Municipality of La Serena. It is located close to downtown, at the intersection with Avenida Avenida Amunátegui Balmaceda and his name is because between 1770 and 1903, at the same intersection where it is currently the stadium, there was a monument that served as main entrance to the city, which was called La Portada de La Serena.
The stadium was opened on 26 August 1952 and at first it was a dirt field, filling in until November 1955, coinciding with the arrival of professionalism Deportes La Serena. It currently has a capacity of 18,243 spectators.
Players
Current squad
Current squad of Deportes La Serena as of 13 August 2026
()
Sources: ANFP Official Web Site
Manager: Felipe Gutiérrez
2026 Winter Transfers
In
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Out
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Managers
Deportes La Serena has been managed predominantly by Chilean coaches throughout its history, although Argentine and Spanish managers have also taken charge. Among its earliest coaches were Alberto Buccicardi, Sergio Lecea, Francisco Villegas, Pedro Areso and Miguel Mocciola. Buccicardi led the club during its first seasons in professional football, while Mocciola was in charge during the early 1960s, one of the most successful periods in the club's history.
The managerial position changed frequently over the following decades, with coaches such as Dante Pesce, Caupolicán Peña, Ramón Climent, José Sulantay, Alberto Quintano and Luis Santibáñez taking charge. Sulantay had two spells at the club, first in 1987–88 and later in 1995.
Gustavo Huerta managed La Serena from 1996 to 1999, one of the longer tenures of the modern era. He was followed during the early 2000s by a succession of managers including Hugo Valdivia, Miguel Ángel Gamboa and Miguel Ángel Fullana. In 2005, Víctor Hugo Castañeda was appointed and remained in charge until 2010. His five-year tenure was among the longest in club history and included La Serena's run to the semi-finals of the 2009 Clausura.[8]
During the 2010s, La Serena was managed by coaches including Fernando Vergara, Miguel Ponce, Luis Pérez, Luis Musrri and Jaime García. Luis Marcoleta took charge in 2018 and led the club to the 2019 promotion play-offs, which ultimately resulted in La Serena's return to the Primera División after defeating Deportes Temuco on penalties in the promotion final.[9]
Miguel Ponce returned for another spell in 2020–21, followed by Ivo Basay, Pablo Marini and Juan José Luvera. Erwin Durán was appointed in 2024 and guided La Serena to the 2024 Primera B championship, securing promotion to the top flight.[2] Following spells under Cristian Paulucci, Francisco Bozán and Mario Sciacqua in 2025, former Chile international Felipe Gutiérrez took charge in 2026.
Club honors
- Copa de Preparación
References
- ↑ "Estadio La Portada de La Serena a un paso de ser entregado". Archived from the original on 22 June 2015.
- 1 2 3 4 "Deportes La Serena se coronó campeón del Ascenso y regresa a Primera División". Emol (in Spanish). 29 September 2024. Retrieved 23 August 2026.
- ↑ "Coquimbo Unido y Deportes La Serena animan una nueva edición del clásico regional". Campeonato Chileno (in Spanish). Retrieved 23 August 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Deportes La Serena cumple siete décadas". Campeonato Chileno (in Spanish). 9 December 2025. Retrieved 23 August 2026.
- ↑ "Chile 1960". RSSSF. Retrieved 23 August 2026.
- ↑ "Colo Colo empató ante La Serena y quedó con la primera opción de avanzar a la final". Cooperativa.cl (in Spanish). 2 December 2009. Retrieved 23 August 2026.
- ↑ "La Serena vuelve a Primera División tras vencer por penales a Temuco". Emol (in Spanish). 23 January 2020. Retrieved 23 August 2026.
- ↑ "Colo Colo empató ante La Serena y quedó con la primera opción de avanzar a la final". Cooperativa.cl (in Spanish). 2 December 2009. Retrieved 23 August 2026.
- ↑ "La Serena vuelve a Primera División tras vencer por penales a Temuco". Emol (in Spanish). 23 January 2020. Retrieved 23 August 2026.
External links
- Official website at the Wayback Machine (archived 2009-12-15) (in Spanish)
- Deportes La Serena on X