One of the most deeply rooted traditions in Peruvian football is the one that Alianza Lima club has been cultivating for the month of October for several decades. At this time of year, the intimate painting leaves aside the blue of his shirt and swaps it for purple, a color with which he pays homage to the Lord of Miracles.
According to historian Armando Leveau, the Cristo Moreno cult has been a customary gift to Alliance fans since the team’s inception.
“The Alliance’s devotion to the Lord of Wonders has always existed. When the procession passed the home of a notable player, a tribute was always paid to him,” he tells La República. However, it wasn’t a matter of faith that triggered the birth of the crimson-white, but rather a more earthly circumstance.
“It was an accidental thing,” says Leveau of the first time Victorians wore what is now the traditional change of coat. On that October 3, 1971, for the game against Sporting Cristal, prop master José Carrión (aka “Chino Pepe”) provided the players with slightly different attire than usual as a last-minute order for new jerseys.
Carrión had unsuccessfully tried to get the company that was clothing Alianza at the time to sell more clothes. “They told him no because Alianza had a lot of debts and besides they didn’t have the blue rag. It was difficult to get colored fabrics back then,” says Leveau.
“’Chino Pepe’ was a litter clerk in the Brotherhood of the Lord of Miracles. Seeing that he could no longer get uniforms, it occurred to him that light purple was the closest thing to blue. Since he had the opportunity to use the Brotherhood fabrics, he takes out the purple fabrics and does it with that color,” adds the historian.
César Cueto was the author of one of the goals in the debut of Alianza Lima’s white and purple kit. Photo: blue and white story
Although the detail didn’t cause any uneasiness among the players, it did with the club’s treasurer Alfonso de Souza Ferreyra. According to Leveau, the event “went a bit unnoticed, but Don Alfonso got angry: he called ‘Chino’ and threw him out of the Alianza.”
Back then, the Blue-Whites (or Purple-Whites) won 2-0 with goals from Teófilo Cubillas and César Cueto. The result would have assuaged De Souza’s anger, who regretted his decision after the meeting.
“Don Alfonso called ‘Chino’ again and told him: ‘Pepe, the same on Sunday with the same sweater’, and so the tradition of the Alianza games in the purple shirt was born,” concludes Leveau, who, although unthinkable, clarifies special history “does not stain the tradition of Alianza por el Señor de los Milagros”.
This is what the purple and white kit looks like for 2022. Photo: Alianza Lima
What games will Alianza Lima play with a purple and white kit?
In 2022, Alianza Lima will play their last six games of the final tournament with white and purple. The Confidants fight for the title of this competition to qualify for the finals and try to win the national championship in League 1.
- Date 14: César Vallejo vs. Alliance of Lima
- Date 15: Alianza Lima vs. Urban Sport
- Date 16: Cienciano vs. Alliance of Lima
- Date 17: Alianza Lima vs. Binational Sport
- Date 18: Ayacucho FC vs. Lima Alliance
- Date 19: Alianza Lima vs. ADT Tarma.