Rosario Central As many an Argentinian will tell you, the city of Rosario, in the province of Santa Fe, is one of the country’s cultural and footballing hotbeds. Situated on the banks of the Parana River and with a population of over one million, it is famed for its imposing monument to the national flag and the beauty of its women. It has also produced some of the nation’s best-loved personalities and institutions, among them a football club that has played a prominent role in the history of the sport in Argentina: Rosario Central. Known popularly as La Academia, Central have the honour of being the first team from outside Buenos Aires to win an international title and have also attracted some illustrious fans over the years, including Ernesto Che Guevara, the comedian Alberto Olmedo and the cartoonist and writer Roberto Fontanarrosa. FIFA.com looks back at the history of a proud club and their ground-breaking sporting triumphs. Birth of an institution Like the rest of Argentina’s most venerable clubs, Rosario Central owes their existence to foreign footballing missionaries. Their roots can be traced back to 1889, when the workers of the Ferrocarril Central Argentino, led by the Englishman Thomas Mutton, founded Central Argentine Railway Athletic, the idea being for them to play the game in their free time. The only problem was that there too few teams for them to compete against, although that would change when the Buen