Peru National Football Team

The Peru national football team represents Peru in international football competitions, and is controlled by the Peruvian Football Federation. Created in 1927, the team competes with nine others in the South American CONMEBOL conference within FIFA. The majority of Peru's home matches are held at the national multi-use stadium, the Estadio Nacional, with friendly matches sometimes hosted at club stadiums.

Peru has qualified for four FIFA World Cups and two Olympic tournaments, reaching the quarterfinals of both tournaments, and has won the Copa América on two occasions. Peru's traditional rival is the football team of Chile, but the national squad has other prominent football rivalries such as the one with Ecuador. The traditional colors of the national team are red and white, and the nickname la Blanquirroja (Spanish for "the white-and-red") is generally used to refer to the team.

During the 1930s, featuring players such as Teodoro Fernández and Alejandro Villanueva, Peru participated in the first FIFA World Cup and the controversial 1936 Summer Olympics.

Moreover, during this time the team won at the inaugural Bolivarian Games in 1938 and their first Copa América in 1939. In the 1950s, despite Peru lacking victory in any major international tournament, the team of Alberto Terry and Valeriano López was considered to be among the top 20 of the decade. Later, between 1970 and 1982 and with players such as Héctor Chumpitaz, Hugo Sotil, and Teófilo Cubillas, a golden generation of Peruvian footballers once more brought Peru into the view of the world, with many considering that a new football power had emerged. With this team, Peru qualified for three FIFA World Cups and won the Copa América in 1975. As of 2009, Peru is going through one of its darkest hours in its history due to a series of poor results in the current World Cup Qualifiers reflected in their lowest ever FIFA ranking in April 2009.

Competitive Record

FIFA World Cup record
1930 - Round 1
1934 - Withdrew
1938–1950 - Did not qualify
1954 - Withdrew
1958–1966 - Did not qualify
1970 - Quarterfinals
1974 - Did not qualify
1978 - Round 2
1982 - Round 1
1986–2006 - Did not qualify

Copa America record
1916-1926 - Absent
1927 - Third Place
1929 - Fourth Place
1935 - Third Place
1937 - Sixth Place
1939 - Winners
1941 - Fourth Place
1942 - Fifth Place
1945 - Withdrew
1946 - Withdrew
1947 - Fifth Place
1949 - Third Place
1953 - Fifth Place
1955 - Third Place
1956 - Sixth Place
1957 - Fourth Place
1959 - Fourth Place
1963 - Fifth Place
1967 - Withdrew
1975 - Winners
1979 - Semifinals
1983 - Semifinals
1987 - Round 1
1989 - Round 1
1991 - Round 1
1993 - Quarterfinals
1995 - Round 1
1997 - Fourth Place
1999 - Quarterfinals
2001 - Quarterfinals
2004 - Quarterfinals
2007 - Quarterfinals
2011 - TBP

Other Tournaments and Records
Bolivarian Games
Gold - 1938 Bogotá
Gold - 1947-48 Lima
Bronze - 1951 Caracas
Gold - 1961 Barranquilla
Gold - 1973 Panama City
Bronze - 1977 La Paz
Gold - 1981 Barquisimeto

CONCACAF Gold Cup
Bronze - 2000 Gold Cup

Copa Centenario de Armenia
Bronze - 1989 Armenia

Kirin Cup
Gold - 1999 Japan
Gold - 2005 Japan

Marlboro Cup
Silver - 1989 New York

Men’s Pre-Olympic Football
Silver - 1960 Peru
Bronze - 1964 Peru
Bronze - 1980 Colombia

Nike United States Cup
Bronze - 1997 U.S. Cup