Club Atlético River Plate (CARP) () is an Argentine professional sports club based in the Belgrano neighborhood of Buenos Aires. Founded in 1901, the club is named after the English-language name for the city's estuary, Río de la Plata. River's home stadium, the Monumental, is the largest in South America. River had the highest average home attendance of any association football club in the world in 2023 with 84,567. With more than 350,000 members at the end of 2023, River is one of the largest sports clubs by membership. It repeated this achievement in 2024 and 2025. With 72 official titles to dateCon Belgrano campeón, ¿cómo quedó la tabla de títulos? on ole.com.arCon la histórica consagración de Belgrano ante River, así quedó la tabla de títulos on infobae.com. 24 May 2026, River Plate is one of the most successful clubs among Argentina’s traditional Big Five of Argentine football.Cómo nacieron los cinco grandes del fútbol argentino on ambito.com, 5 Aug 2025
Although a multi-sport club, River Plate is best known for its professional association football department, which has won Argentina's Primera División championship a record 38 times, most recently in 2023. River Plate have also won 16 national cups, making River Argentina's most successful team in domestic competitions with 54 titles in total. At international level, River have won 18 titles, including four Copa Libertadores, one Intercontinental Cup, one Supercopa Sudamericana, one Copa Sudamericana, three Recopa Sudamericanas, one Copa Interamericana, one Suruga Bank Championship, a record five Copa Aldaos, and one Tie Cup. In addition, River Plate's reserve team won the U-20 Copa Libertadores in 2012. After winning the 2014 Copa Sudamericana, 2015 Recopa Sudamericana and the 2015 Copa Libertadores, River Plate became the first team to simultaneously hold CONMEBOL's three current major international competitions.
River Plate are ranked first in the all-time Argentine Primera División table, having gained the most points, having played the most matches, and having the highest win percentage. River are also ranked first in the historical table of the Copa Libertadores, being the South American team with most games won and the most points gained. The club were placed ninth in the FIFA Club of the Century poll in 2000. In a survey published by the Argentine Football Association in 2016, 6 out of 11 players of the all-time greatest Argentina national team had played for River Plate.
River have a fierce rivalry with Boca Juniors. Matches between them are known as the Superclásico, and the rivalry is among the most heated in the sport, due to the fixture's global popularity and both clubs having the most fans in Argentina. Notable players who have played for River include José Manuel Moreno, Ángel Labruna, Adolfo Pedernera, Amadeo Carrizo, Alfredo Di Stéfano, Omar Sívori, Norberto Alonso, Daniel Passarella, Enzo Francescoli, Roberto Ayala, Ariel Ortega, Marcelo Salas, Hernán Crespo, Marcelo Gallardo, Pablo Aimar, Javier Saviola, Javier Mascherano, Radamel Falcao, Gonzalo Higuaín and Enzo Fernández.
History
According with the club's official history, River Plate was founded on 25 May 1901, close to the La Boca neighborhood (later the home of fierce rivals Boca Juniors). They were formed from the merger of two clubs, "Santa Rosa" and "La Rosales", with Leopoldo Bard elected as the first president. The name River Plate was chosen because of an incident during the construction of Buenos Aires Port: one of the members had seen how the workers of Dique nº 3 left their duties for a while to play a football match. The boxes they were working with just said "The River Plate" (the name the English gave to the Río de la Plata) and that inscription was taken to name the new club.
River Plate affiliated to the Argentine Football Association in 1905, debuting in the third division against Facultad de Medicina. On 13 December 1908, the team was promoted to first division after beating Racing Club 2–1. However, the match was declared null due to River supporters jumping onto the field to celebrate with the players, so a new match had to be played. River again won, this time 7–0, to achieve promotion.
In 1914 River won its first domestic championship, the Copa de Competencia Jockey Club and its first international title, the Copa de Competencia Chevallier Boutell. The nickname Los Millonarios came after the acquisition of winger Carlos Peucelle in 1931 for $10,000 and Bernabé Ferreyra for $35,000 (a large sum of money for the period) in 1932.
In the following years, River Plate consolidated its place as one of the most popular teams of Argentina, and the 20th century brought much success. The club's record of 28 official tournaments saw them dubbed El Campeón del Siglo (The Champions of the Century).
Symbols
Kit
Kit evolution
Notes
Kit suppliers and shirt sponsors
Adidas has been River Plate's uniform supplier since 1982, becoming one of the company's largest sponsorship deals in the world, only behind German club Bayern Munich.River Plate y Adidas, uno de los contratos más largos del mundo by Marcos Vázquez on Pasión Fútbol website, 13 November 2013 The US$60 million partnership with the German sports company signed in 2015 (extending the deal to 2021) marked the most expensive kit agreement in the history of Argentine football.El increíble contrato que firmó River con Adidas by Nicolás Ceres, 16 November 2015
Badge
As in many football shirts and sports in general, the team's jersey has a badge on its front, as a symbol of the institution. When the River Plate jersey was created it did not have a badge, and its presence varied throughout the history, according to the designs of each era."Escudo de River Plate" on Primeroriver.com, 26 December 2016 Currently it is embroidered on the jersey, with three colors (red, white and black). Its format resembles that of the jersey, as it has a red stripe that crosses it, along with the acronym of the club (CARP) in black, and the background is white, in a stylized design.
When Hugo Santilli became chairman in 1984, he soon called to a competition where a new emblem would be chosen. The main objective of this new image was to eradicate the nickname Gallinas (Hens) that River's rivals (Boca Juniors fans mainly) used to mock them. Artists from Argentina took part in that competition. The club finally chose a logo designed by Claudio Loiseau (brother of cartoonist Caloi).La verdadera historia del león de River y el fallido intento de Boca por copiarlo by Pablo Tallón on Noticias Argentinas, 8 Mar 2021 This emblem showed the figure of a lion (wearing a River jersey) rising from the Monumental stadium.
Once it was approved, the lion logo was added to the uniforms, debuting in 1985. With that emblem on their chests, River Plate won the Copa Libertadores de América and European/South American Cup.A 40 años del debut de un león en la camiseta de River, el isotipo campeón que despertó la reacción de Boca by Andrés Burgo, 13 Feb 2025 In 1989, when Santilli left the club so the lion went with him and has not been reestablished since.Escudo de River Plate: historia y diseño by Carlos Martínez on Goal.com
In February 2022, River Plate launched its new corporate image, which included an update to the logo and a typography designed exclusively for the club. The corporate image was created and developed by "Grupo Berro", a branding and design studio that had been working on the corporate image for over two years.La historia detrás del nuevo escudo de River on Minuto Uno, 22 Feb 2022Los detalles de cómo se creó el nuevo escudo de River on TyC Sports, 23 Feb 2022Club Atlético River Plate - Branding & Identidad. Estrategia de comunicación on Grupo Berro
Nicknames
The "River Plate" name was chosen in 1901, when the team was still located at the La Boca neighbourhood, next to the Río de la Plata ("River Plate" in some English sources). Proposed names as "Club Atlético Forward", "Juventud Boquense" or "La Rosales" had been rejected. Pedro Martínez saw the name "The River Plate" written at ship containers, and proposed it as a name, which was finally accepted as the official name.
River fans and the media commonly use the nickname Los Millonarios (The Millionaires) for the club. The name originated from the 1930s following some expensive player transfers from other clubs, including Carlos Peucelle from Sportivo Buenos Aires in 1931 and Bernabé Ferreyra from Tigre in 1932.¿Por qué a River Plate le dicen Millonarios?, Goal.com, 9 December 2018
Due to the red band in their shirt, it is also common to refer to River as El Equipo de la Banda (the team with the band) or simply La Banda (which means "the stripe", but can also mean "the band" -both as in "gang" and "musical group"). River Plate's forwards between 1941 and 1946 were given the nickname La Máquina (The Machine), due to their synchronization and movements on the field.La Máquina de River by Matías Rodríguez, El Gráfico, 28 February 2014
There was also a River Plate team that was known as La Maquinita (The Little Machine, as tribute to its predecessor) in the 1950s. Managed by José María Minella, the team earned the nickname after winning five championships in six years (1952–57).Una hazaña inolvidable, Clarín, 22 June 2002 Some notable players were Alfredo Di Stéfano, Santiago Vernazza, Walter Gómez, Enrique Omar Sívori, among others. Some members of the original Máquina of the 1940s such as Labruna and Loustau, were also part of the team.Murió Santiago Vernazza, ex integrante de "La Maquinita" de River, La Nación, 12 November 2017
Anthem The club's anthem was written in 1918, prior to a Superclásico, by Arturo Antelo—one of River's founders—and was later recorded for the first time in 1932 by Francisco Canaro, set to the melody of the Irish song "It's a Long Way to Tipperary". Spanish originalEnglish translationWe will raise our whole soul in the humble song, renewing with affection the innocent emotion. And with bonds we shall triumph, we shall strive to unite the glorious past and the brilliant future.
River Plate, your beloved name, whether defeated or victorious, always, united as one, will have us gathered around you. River Plate, your beloved name, whether defeated or victorious. As long as your flag lives, we shall raise it with honor!
River Plate, in that name, of such sweet resonance, there is an echo that moves us and makes the heart grow greater. River Plate, in that name, of such sweet resonance. As long as your flag lives, we shall raise it with honor!
River Plate, your beloved name, we shall proclaim with love. Our blood is intertwined with your white banner.
River Plate, your beloved name, we shall proclaim with love. As long as your flag lives, we shall raise it with honor!
Motto The club's current motto is "Vivir y jugar con Grandeza" (Living and play with Greatness), which began to be used in 2021, seeking to renew the club's identity and represent its philosophy.
For much of its history, the club's slogan was "El Más Grande, lejos" ("The Greatest, by far")—the best-known and most widely used slogan for two decades. It was an idea proposed by president Alfredo Davicce (1989-1997). It originated with a massive flag unfurled for the first time by the fans during a Superclásico against Boca in River's home stadium on October 27 1985. Later, "El Más Grande" would become one of the club's nicknames.
Rivalry
River Plate and Boca Juniors are the two largest football clubs in Argentina, with more than half the country's football fans supporting the clubs. Due to the rivalry between them, the Boca Juniors vs River Plate Superclásico local derby match was listed by the BBC as one of the most famous derbies in the world. Attending the match was also acclaimed in 2004 as the number one of the Fifty sporting things you must do before you die by The Observer.
Stadiums