The Rapid Rise of San Antonio Bulo Bulo: A Club Backed by Power and Controversy
Facundo Trotta Arrieta
Dailysports's expert
Just a year ago, San Antonio Bulo Bulo was virtually unknown in South American football. Today, the Bolivian club hosts Vélez Sarsfield in the Copa Libertadores after stunning Olimpia and losing to Peñarol. Their astonishing rise from obscurity to the continental stage, however, has roots beyond the pitch.
According to TyC Sports, the club was founded in 1962 by a local priest in a parish in Cochabamba. For decades, it remained a small neighborhood team with limited resources, often paying players with cinnamon-flavored ice cream. Everything changed when the political spotlight turned their way.
Former president Evo Morales, whose influence remains strong in the region of El Trópico de Cochabamba, long sought to elevate a local club. He first backed Palmaflor, which collapsed following Morales’ resignation in 2019. That project’s failure paved the way for San Antonio to rise. The team was relocated to Entre Ríos, a town of 8,000 people that also hosts a major YPFB petrochemical plant. In 2020, the 17,000-seat Carlos Villegas stadium was inaugurated, signaling a new chapter.
In 2021, San Antonio won the regional third division and in 2023 finally achieved promotion to the top tier via Bolivia’s Copa Simón Bolívar. The campaign included questionable results—like a 12-0 win over San Lorenzo del Beni—and favorable refereeing that raised eyebrows.
In their debut season, they shocked the nation by winning the 2024 Apertura, defeating Bolívar and Universitario de Vinto to qualify for the Libertadores and secure a $3 million prize.
Yet, behind the success, chaos lingered. Coach Julio César Baldivieso resigned just ten days before the tournament citing poor conditions. His replacement, Joaquín Monasterio, guided them to a 3-2 win over Olimpia and a respectable 2-0 loss at Peñarol—this despite the team training five hours from their home ground, with no proper facilities.
The current squad includes several ex-Always Ready players, a club presided by Andrés Costa, son of Bolivian FA president Fernando Costa—a close Morales ally. Their kits are sponsored by UTB, a Costa family business.
San Antonio Bulo Bulo has become a paradox. For players and coaches, it’s an unlikely platform to shine on South America’s biggest stage. But to others, it represents the uneasy intersection of politics and football—marked by rapid success, powerful connections, and lingering suspicion.
