Julio Blanco

Julio Blanco
Personal information
Full name Julio Ignacio Blanco Alfonso
Date of birth 18 September 1937
Place of birth Havana, Cuba
Date of death 10 April 2020(2020-04-10) (aged 82)
Place of death Havana, Cuba
Position(s) Goalkeeper
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1955–1957 Deportivo Puentes Grandes
1957–1961 Deportivo Mordazo
1962–1967 FC Industriales
International career
1959–1962 Cuba 8 (0)
Managerial career
?–? Deportivo Industriales
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Julio Ignacio Blanco Alfonso (18 September 1937 – 10 April 2020) was a Cuban footballer who played goalkeeper.

Playing career

Club career

Blanco was raised in Puentes Grandes, by parents from Ourense, Spain. He first played for Deportivo Puentes Grandes until 1957, before joining Deportivo Mordazo. Here, he won the three championships of the Campeonato Nacional de Fútbol de Cuba in 1958, 1959, and 1961.

In October 1958, Mordazo went on a tour of Mexico, where he distinguished himself in multiple matches and was praised by the Mexican press.[1] In 1961, Blanco spent six months in Spain and negotiated a contract with RCD Espanyol, which fell through and he returned to Mordazo. He ended his career in 1967 with FC Industriales, with whom he won championships in 1963 and 1964.

International career

In 1959, Blanco played his first match for Cuba at the Pan American Games in Chicago. He was injured during a game against Costa Rica.[2]

He took part in the 1960 and 1961 CCCF Championships in Havana and San José, playing four games in total.[3][4] His last match for Cuba came in 1962 in the Central American and Caribbean Games in a match against Jamaica when Cuba was already down 5-1. He could not save his team from defeat, with a final score of 6-1.[5]

Death

Blanco died on 10 April 2020 at the age of 82 in Havana.[6]

References

  1. ^ "De la historia: Gira del Deportivo Mordazo por México". El blog del futbol cubano (in Spanish). 1 February 2017. Archived from the original on 26 February 2018.
  2. ^ "Panamerican Games 1959 (Chicago)". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation.
  3. ^ "CCCF Championship 1960 (La Habana, Cuba, Feb 14-29)". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation.
  4. ^ "CCCF Championship 1961 (San José, Costa Rica, March 5-19)". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation.
  5. ^ "Central American and Caribbean Games 1962 (Kingston, Jamaica)". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation.
  6. ^ "El fútbol cubano pierde a uno de sus mejores porteros". TeleRebelde (in Spanish). 12 April 2020. Archived from the original on 24 May 2020. Retrieved 18 April 2020.