Club León

Club León was born on 20 August 1944 in Mexico's shoemaking capital, from the merger of Unión de Curtidores and the Guanajuato state side, and the leather stayed in the fans' nickname: the Panzas Verdes, or simply La Fiera. It was the first great club of the professional era, four titles between 1948 and 1956 with Adalberto "Dumbo" López and his 136 goals, and a fifth in 1992, before dropping to the second tier in 2002 and spending ten years there.

It returned in 2012 under Grupo Pachuca and made history at once: back-to-back champions in Apertura 2013 and Clausura 2014 with Juan Antonio Pizzi and Mauro Boselli, an eighth title in 2020, the Concacaf Champions Cup in 2023, with James Rodríguez still to come. It plays at the Estadio León, Mexico's Nou Camp, in emerald green and white, and in 2025 found itself thrown out of the Club World Cup for sharing an owner with Pachuca. A club of leather, moustaches and roars.