C.D. El Nacional
Club Deportivo El Nacional (until 2018 Club Especializado de Alto Rendimiento El Nacional) is an Ecuadorian sports club from Quito, known best for their professional football team. The team currently plays in the Serie A, the first-tier football league in the country after gaining promotion in 2022.
| Full name | Club Deportivo El Nacional | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | Puros Criollos (Pure Criollos) Equipo Militar (Military team) La Maquina Gris (The Gray Machine) El Rojo (The Red) | ||
| Founded | 1 June 1964 | ||
| Ground | Estadio Olímpico Atahualpa | ||
| Capacity | 35,742 | ||
| Chairman | Lucía Vallecilla | ||
| Manager | Ever Almeida | ||
| League | Ecuadorian Serie A | ||
| 2023 | Serie A, 4th of 16 | ||
| Website | Club website | ||
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El Nacional has thirteen national championships (one less than Emelec and three less than Barcelona). The club has participated in more Copa Libertadores than any other club in Ecuador with 22 appearances. Their best performance in the continental tournament was as a semi-finalist in 1985.
El Nacional was founded on 1 June 1964, and was administered by the Ecuadorian Military since the foundation until 2013, when the club celebrated its first ever democratic elections. The club has maintained a tradition of only playing Ecuadorian footballers, which has given them the nickname of Puros Criollos ("Pure Natives"). Rival clubs included crosstown clubs LDU Quito, Deportivo Quito, Universidad Católica and the Guayaquileans Barcelona and Emelec. Their home stadium is Estadio Olímpico Atahualpa.
Other sports the organization participates in are gymnastics, table tennis, Ecuavolley, chess, and shooting.