Chapulineros de Oaxaca

Chapulineros de Oaxaca is a Mexican football team nicknamed Los chapulineros (Grasshoppers) that plays in the Liga de Balompié Mexicano. The club was founded in 1983 and is based in the state of Oaxaca where it plays its home matches at the Estadio Independiente MRCI. The club has played in the Tercera División de México, Segunda División de México, and the Liga de Ascenso de México.^[2] They previously played in the Liga Premier–Serie B.

Chapulineros de Oaxaca

Full name	Chapulineros de Oaxaca Fútbol Club
Nickname(s)	Chapulineros (Grasshopper eaters)
Founded	1983; 42 years ago (1983)[1]
Ground	Estadio Independiente MRCI San Jerónimo Tlacochahuaya, Oaxaca, Mexico
Capacity	3,000
Owner	MRCI
Chairman	José María Ramírez
Manager	Jonathan Estrada
League	Liga Premier – Serie A
Apertura 2025	Pre–season
Home colours Away colours Third colours

History

The club's origins date back to 1982, when the Benito Juárez Autonomous University of Oaxaca football team began to participate in the Segunda División 'B' de México. Two years later, the university bought team Pumas ENEP, a Pumas UNAM reserve team and was renamed as Chapulineros de Oaxaca, playing at the Segunda División 'A' de México.^[3][4] After this fact, the team wandered between the Segunda División 'A' and Segunda División 'B', until 1993 when it won the Second B championship, being the only title of the club so far.^[5]

In 1994, the team remains in the Segunda División after the creation of the Primera División 'A' de México, later it was relocated to Ciudad Nezahualcóyotl, State of Mexico and became a team affiliated with Toros Neza, to later be managed by the Universidad Regional del Sureste.^[6]

For the 2001–02 season, the Grupo Pegaso returns to the Chapulineros to professional football after purchasing the Lobos UAP franchise and relocating it to the city of Oaxaca, Oaxaca. The team had bad results and had to play a relegation play-out to remain in the league, which they managed to win and could continue to play in the same division. For the 2003–04 season the team was dissolved again when it was relocated to the city of Tlaxcala, Tlaxcala, where it was renamed as Guerreros de Tlaxcala.

In August 2015, the MRCI corporate obtained the Teca UTN franchise from Huixquilucan, State of Mexico, they renamed the team as Chapulineros, relocated it to the city of Oaxaca and began to participate in the Liga Premier de Ascenso as of that season.^[7][8] For the 2017–18 season the team was relocated to the Serie B due to the lack of infrastructure to be able to participate for the promotion to the Liga de Ascenso de México. In 2018, the team paused its sporting activity because it did not get the endorsement to participate in the league from the FMF.^[9]

In 2019, the team returned to compete in the FMF, leaving this federation the following year to join the LBM.^[10]

In its first season, the team finished in third place in the regular season with 22 points from seven wins, two draws and one loss. In the championship playoff, Chapulineros eliminated Morelos F.C. and Furia Roja F.C. to reach the final, where they defeated Atlético Veracruz in the penalty shoot-out after tying three goals on the aggregate score, in this way the team of Oaxaca won its first championship in the new competition, as well as being the first champion in LBM history.

Chapulineros de Oaxaca won the LBM championships again in the 2021, 2022 and 2023 seasons, making it the most winning team in this league. In January 2025, this league was dissolved due to a lack of participating teams, making the competition's continuation unviable, so Chapulineros had to look for a new league to compete in.^[11]

In June 2025, the team rejoined the Segunda División de México after five years away from competitions organized by the Mexican Football Federation.^[12]

Year by year

Year	Club Name	Division	Position
1983-1984	Chapulineros	Segunda División
1985-1986	Chapulineros	Segunda División
1986-1987	Chapulineros	Segunda División
1987-1988	Chapulineros	Segunda División
1993-1994	Chapulineros	Primera División
Invierno 2001	Chapulineros	Primera A
Verano 2002	Chapulineros	Primera A
Invierno 2002	Chapulineros	Primera A
Verano 2003	Chapulineros	Primera Division
Apertura 2015	Chapulineros	Segunda División	Eliminated (Regular)
Clausura 2016	Chapulineros	Segunda División	Eliminated (Regular)
Apertura 2016	Chapulineros	Segunda División	3rd (Regular)

Past kits

badge worn during stay in the Primera A

2nd Past Badge

First kit evolution

2001

2020–21

Players

Current squad

As of April 1, 2022^[13]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 2 FW  MEX José Antonio Pérez 3 DF  MEX Carlos Gutiérrez 6 DF  MEX Leonel Guerrero 7 FW  MEX Víctor Lojero 8 FW  MEX Richard Okunorobo 11 MF  MEX David Ávalos 14 FW  MEX Donato Estala 17 DF  MEX Jorge Henestrosa

No. Pos. Nation Player 20 GK  MEX Alfredo Rivera 23 MF  MEX Richard Ruíz 24 DF  MEX Abel Fuentes 27 DF  MEX Christian Pérez 28 MF  MEX Jesús Monzón 30 GK  MEX Luis Robles 31 FW  MEX Dominik Aquino 99 MF  MEX Omar Arellano

Reserve teams

Chapulineros de Oaxaca (Liga TDP)

Reserve team that plays in the Liga TDP, the fourth level of the Mexican league system.

Recent outstanding players

• Alan Cruz
• Jorge Bernal
• Cristian Mazzón
• Marco Antonio Sánchez
• Miguel Ángel Vargas
• Ángel Lemus
• Hugo Omar Sánchez
• José Luis Mendoza
• Ricardo Munguía
• Silvio Rudman

Honours

• Liga de Balompié Mexicano:

2020/21, 2021, 2022, 2023-A, 2023-B