Independiente Medellin

Early years

Independiente Medellín was founded on 14 November 1913 under the name of Medellín Foot Ball Club by siblings Alberto, Luis, and Rafael Uribe Piedrahíta. The team played its first match against Sporting Medellín, who defeated them 11–0.

The club won amateur titles in 1918, 1920, 1922, 1923 and 1930; with these titles it became one of the most important teams of Colombia at the time.

In 1948, Medellín joined professional football and played the first edition of the Colombian professional league. Medellín placed seventh out of 10 teams, winning seven matches. Their first match was a 4–0 defeat against América de Cali. Their first win was 3–2 against Junior.

1950–1954: "La Danza del Sol"

In 1950, Medellin signed many Peruvian footballers in a movement known as El Dorado, when Colombian teams signed many foreign footballers. Some of the players signed include brothers Constantino Perales and Agapito Perales, Segundo Castillo, Roberto Drago and Luis Guzmán Gonzales. This squad was dubbed "La Danza del Sol", and that season the club finished fourth with 34 points.

Medellín did not play in 1952 and 1953 due to economic problems. In 1953, the club changed its entire administration and was renamed to its current name, Deportivo Independiente Medellín. In the club's first season back, the 1954 season, they finished third in the league table. 1954 also marked the arrival of Argentine footballer José Manuel "El Charro" Moreno, who had won two South American championships with Argentina and many trophies at River Plate.

1955–1970: First Golden Age

Under El Charro's command, who had taken a role as a player-manager, DIM won its first title in the 1955 Campeonato Profesional, finishing first with 31 points and just one defeat. Argentine striker Felipe Marino was the tournament's top goalscorer, with 22 goals. The team won its second title two years later, in 1957, with almost the same players as the previous seasons. José Vicente Grecco was the top scorer of the tournament. Despite having strong squads, in 1959 and 1961 DIM finished runner-up to Millonarios, who had one of the strongest sides in Colombian football history and won four straight titles from 1960 to 1964; in 1964, DIM also came close to winning the title, finishing third but only three points from Millonarios.

In 1966, Medellín achieved their first ever qualification for the Copa Libertadores, after finishing runner-up in the league. They played against Argentine sides Racing de Avellaneda and River Plate, Bolivian teams 31 de Octubre and Bolívar, and fellow Colombians Independiente Santa Fe. They finished fifth out of six in their group and were eliminated.

1971–1983: Lacklustre campaigns, Copa Colombia title

In 1971, Medellin did not participate in the league due to economic hardships. The 70s were a low point for the club; the club were consistently finishing in the middle to bottom half of the league table, and were never close to winning the title.

The club won its first Copa Colombia in 1981; although this title is not officially recognized by many experts nor by DIMAYOR, it is recognized by CONMEBOL. Despite the joy of winning their first cup, in the 1981 league season, the club had a lacklustre season and finished last in the aggregate table with 38 points from 47 matches. Things improved for the rest of the 80s, and despite not winning anymore titles for the decade, the club was consistently qualifying for the octagonal finals.

1984–1998: Slow Improvements

In 1984, with young manager Julio Comesaña at the post, the club finished third in the octogonal, the best participation the club had in the league since 1964.

1989: cancelled season

In 1989, a year where Medellín had one of the strongest squads in the league and was expected to win the title, a tragic event occurred. In one of the final games of the season, Medellín tied América de Cali 0–0 at home. During the game, linesman Álvaro Ortega disallowed a Medellín goal, angering many people. Reports say that a person that had been sent by Pablo Escobar hunted Ortega down and murdered him, with the motive being a lost bet on the match. In response, the Colombian Football Federation decided to cancel the rest of the season, which left the 1989 league season without a winner.

1993: Heartbreaking runner-up season

On 19 December 1993, going into the last match of the 1993 season, Medellín and Junior were fighting for a tight first place, as both clubs had the same number of points. Junior was playing América de Cali at home in Barranquilla while simultaneously Medellín played hometown rivals Atlético Nacional. A Medellín win combined with a Junior loss or draw would give Medellín the title. At halftime América were leading the game in Barranquilla 1–0 and in Medellin the game was still 0–0; at that moment América were winning the title due to the draw in Medellín. Junior scored two goals to put the game at 2–1 with ten minutes remaining, and Medellín scored at the same time to put the game at 1–0. América tied the game at 2–2 with seven minutes remaining. The match at Estadio Anatasio Girardot ended with Medellín winning 1–0 while awaiting the 2–2 game in Barranquilla to end, which still had five minutes remaining due to a delay at the start of the second half. Medellín players were celebrating with a victory lap and giving interviews with reporters white they waited for the final whistle in Barranquilla. However, Oswaldo Mackenzie scored a late goal in the 89th minute and gave Junior the 3–2 win and the title, leaving the Medellín players and fans heartbroken.

As a result of their great campaign, Medellin returned to the Copa Libertadores for the first time in almost three decades. Entering the 1994 edition, they topped their group and then beat Universitario in the round of 16 before being eliminated by Junior in the quarter-finals.