The Copa Provincia de Buenos Aires Presidente Juan Domingo Perón (or simply Copa Campeonato Juan Domingo Perón or Copa Perón) was an official Argentine football cup competitionLanús sumó una nueva estrella a su historia y los hinchas celebran la determinación de la AFACopa Juan Domingo Perón: por qué la AFA le reconoció a Lanús on Clarín, 29 Oct 2024
The championship was organized by the Argentine Football Association (AFA) and the Government of Buenos Aires Province. It was held as a special tournament preceding the official national championship in 1955. LanúsLa AFA oficializó un título de Lanús de 1955 y llegó a la séptima estrella de su historia on La Nueva, 29 Oct 2024 won the tournament (the first senior title of their history) after defeating Estudiantes (LP) in the final match.Lanús suma una nueva estrella tras la oficialización de un título de 1955Reconocimiento de la AFA al título de la Copa Campeonato Juan Domingo Perón, logrado en 1955 on Yahoo! NoticiasLanús tiene una nueva estrella: ¿qué título le dieron?. Olé, 1 Nov 2024
Despite its provincial and regional origins, the tournament was officially recognized as a national competition by the Argentine Football Association (AFA) in 2024, following a formal request submitted by Club Atlético Lanús. The competition featured seven teams, comprising six from the Primera División and one from Primera B.
Format The participating teams competed in a heptagonal format, employing a direct elimination system followed by qualifying rounds for winners and losers.
In the first stage, due to an odd number of participating clubs, Tigre advanced directly to the subsequent round without competing. Club Atlético Lanús emerged victorious in the winners' bracket, while Club Estudiantes de Eva Perón ended up in the losers' zone.
The competition was contested by seven clubs, mostly of them located within the Buenos Aires Province region (with the exception of Chacarita Juniors) that were competing in Primera División in 1955. Independiente withdrew before the tournament started.
It was played under a single-elimination format, and like Copa Adrián C. Escobar, when a match ended in a tie after the overtime, the team with most corner kicks conceded was declared winner.Copa Adrián C. Escobar by Osvaldo Gorgazzi on RSSSF
Participating teams Club City Chacarita Juniors Buenos Aires Gimnasia y Esgrima (EP) Eva Perón Estudiantes (LP) Eva Perón C.A. Banfield Banfield C.A. Lanús Lanús Racing Club Avellaneda Tigre Victoria Notes
Club Atlético Independiente chose not to participate in the competition, citing prior commitments to a series of international friendly matches. The club was also impacted by the departure of several players who had been called up to represent the Argentina national team in the South American Championship held that same year.
Tournament Winners qualified to the winning teams round, while losers advanced to the losing teams round.
First round and winning teams round In the first stage, due to an odd number of participating clubs, Club Atlético Tigre advanced directly to the subsequent round without competing. Club Atlético Lanús emerged victorious in the winners' bracket, while Club Estudiantes de Eva Perón ended up in the losers' zone.
Losing teams round
Estudiantes (LP) qualified to play the final v the winner of the winning teams round, Lanús
Final
The final was contested between Lanús and Estudiantes (LP) at a neutral venue selected by an AFA vote. The match took place at Estadio Presidente Perón, home stadium of Racing Club in Avellaneda, and was officiated by English referee Leslie Burfield.
GK Enrique Alvarez Vega DF Emilio Pratto DF Angel Beltrán MF Nicolás Daponte MF Juan Héctor Guidi MF José Nazionale FW Oscar Contreras FW Osvaldo Gil FW Rodolfo García FW Urbano Reynoso FW Felipe Zelada Substitutions: FW Emilio Fernandez FW Ramón Moyano Manager: Juan B. Cevasco
GK Santos Gioffré DF Leandro Casanueva DF José María Silvero MF Walter Garcerón MF Juan Urriolabeitía MF Alberto Bouché FW Ricardo Scialino FW Francisco Quaglia FW Roberto Rolando FW Héctor Antonio FW Manuel PellegrinaSubstitutions: FW Juan Chena Manager: ?
Goal Scorers PlayerClubGoalsRodolfo GarcíaLanús3Roberto RolandoEstudiantes (LP)3Julio RavelliChacarita Juniors3Benito CejasLanús2Oreste CorbattaRacing2Osvaldo Gil Lanús1Manuel Pelegrina Estudiantes (LP)1
Source: RSSSF
Aftermath
The Campeonato de la Provincia de Buenos Aires was a pre-season football tournament organized by the government of Buenos Aires Province and announced by the Argentine Football Association (AFA) prior to the start of the 1955 Primera División season. The winning team was awarded three trophies: one presented by the provincial government and two by the AFA. One of the AFA trophies remained in the possession of Club Atlético Lanús, while the other was retained in the association's displays.
The winner should have been awarded three trophies, two by AFA and one by the province. Nevertheless and due to the 1955 coup d'etat that ended the second presidential term of Juan Perón, Lanús was not awarded the cup because the military government had appointed an interventor at the association. AFA did not officialise the title until October 2024, claiming their 7th. senior title.¡Llegó la séptima estrella! La Copa Perón 1955 fue oficializada como título de Lanús by Bruno Russo on Fortaleza Granate, 28 Oct 2024
Nearly seven decades later, in 2024, the AFA retroactively granted official recognition to the tournament, a decision that generated criticism and controversy. Despite the fact that the tournament had originally been referenced in AFA bulletins for the 1955 season as part of the “special tournaments” category and not listed among official competitions, the governing body acknowledged it as an official title.
Researchers and historians have criticized the AFA’s decision to grant official status to the tournament, arguing that "there is no logical historical coherence" in recognizing a competition of provincial character as a national title.
In January 2025, the title was finally made official in AFA's Annual Club Report 2024 and in the list of champions on its website as a national title.
References