Racing de Veracruz
Mexican association football club
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Racing de Veracruz is a Mexican professional football club based in San Juan Bautista Tuxtepec, Oaxaca,[2] that plays in the Primera Premier, the main branch of the Liga Premier de México, the third tier of Mexican football.
(as Racing Fútbol Club Porto Palmeiras)[1]
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| Full name | Racing de Veracruz | ||
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| Nickname | El Monstruo Morado (The Purple Monster) | ||
| Founded | 2 May 2023 (as Racing Fútbol Club Porto Palmeiras)[1] | ||
| Stadium | Estadio Gustavo Pacheco Villaseñor San Juan Bautista Tuxtepec, Oaxaca[2] | ||
| Capacity | 15,000 | ||
| Owner | Racing Sports Holding | ||
| Chairman | Maclovio Yáñez | ||
| Manager | Israel Hernández Pat | ||
| League | Liga Premier (Primera Premier) | ||
| 2025–26 | Liga Premier (Serie A) Regular phase: 1st (Group III) Final phase: Quarterfinals | ||
| Website | www | ||
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History
On 5 December 2019, the Veracruz metro area was left without representation in Mexican football after the dissolution of Tiburones Rojos de Veracruz, a team that played in the Liga MX.[3] Later, some clubs emerged seeking to fill the void left by the original team, such as Atlético Veracruz and Club Veracruzano de Fútbol Tiburón, however, both clubs failed in their attempt to attract fans from the city.
In March 2023, the Government of Veracruz began the reconstruction works of the Estadio Luis "Pirata" Fuente, with the aim of making it attractive to new investors interested in bringing a team to the city.[4] Meanwhile, Porto Palmeiras, a local football school, began negotiations with the aim of getting a professional team for the city. In April 2023, it reached an agreement with Racing City Group, a Qatari conglomerate that owns teams around the world.[5]
On 23 April 2023, the agreement between Porto Palmeiras and Racing City Group was announced, the new team was called Racing Porto Palmeiras.[6]
On 30 June 2023, the team was accepted into the Liga Premier - Serie A, being placed in Group 2.[7] The club signed Héctor Jair Real as the first team manager.
The team played its first official match on 12 August 2023, in that game Racing defeated C.F. La Piedad by a score of 1–2, Fabrizio Díaz scored the first goal in the history of the Veracruz team.[8]
On 10 April 2024, Racing Porto Palmeiras won its first official title by being champion of the Copa Conecta, a tournament that pits 32 teams from Liga Premier and Liga TDP. The team won the title after defeating Diablos Tesistán 0–2.[9]
On 28 June 2024, the team was renamed Racing de Veracruz because the board decided to end its relationship with the Racing City Group in addition to seeking the club's identification with the city and not only with the football school that was part of the team's founding.[10]
In July 2024, the owners of Racing de Veracruz bought Tepatitlán F.C., a team that participates in the Liga de Expansión MX, with the aim of establishing the Racing in the second tier of Mexican football starting with the 2025–26 season.[11] However, in February 2025, the board announced that the team would remain in Tepatitlán due to the limited chances of receiving the Liga de Expansión approval for the team's relocation to Veracruz.[12]
After Racing's disassociation with Tepatitlán, the board focused on strengthening its own sports structure, creating a new subsidiary team called F.C. Racing, now Racing de Veracruz B which competes in the Liga Premier B from the 2025–26 season.[13] A second reserves team was also created, which participates in the Liga TDP.[14]
In February 2026, the club was evicted from its stadium, the Unidad Deportiva Hugo Sánchez in Boca del Río, Veracruz, following the facility's closure in the wake of a violent clash between Racing and Celaya F.C. fans that resulted in one fatality; consequently, Racing finished the 2025–26 season playing at the Mexican Football Federation's facilities in Toluca.[15] Although the team tried to negotiate the handover of the venue, the government rejected their request and maintained the closure of the sports complex.[16]
In addition to the lack of a home venue in Veracruz, a new team, Piratas F.C., was founded in the city for the 2026–27 season; this team secured full government support and exclusive use of the Estadio Luis "Pirata" Fuente, the city's only other venue certified to host professional matches, making it unfeasible for Racing to remain in the city.[17] Consequently, on 14 August 2026, Racing announced its relocation to the city of San Juan Bautista Tuxtepec, Oaxaca, located approximately 150 kilometers from Veracruz.[2][18]
Honors
National
Promotion divisions
- Copa Conecta
- Champions (1): 2024
Friendly
- Torneo Internacional Premier: 2023
Players
- As of 2 September 2026[19]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Reserve teams
- Racing de Veracruz (Liga Premier B)
- Reserve team that plays in the Liga Premier de México, the third level of the Mexican league system
- Racing de Veracruz (Liga TDP)
- Reserve team that plays in the Liga TDP, the fourth level of the Mexican league system
Managers
Héctor Jair Real (2023–2024)- Martín Calderón (2024)
- Alejandro Pérez (2024–2025)
- Marco Angúlo (2025)[20]
- Gastón Obledo (2026)
- Israel Hernández Pat (2026–)