Deportivo Municipal’s 1,000-sponsor shirt saves Lima club and sparks ambitious rebuild | OneFootball

Deportivo Municipal have dodged collapse with a viral mosaic shirt crammed with sponsors, a lifeline that arrived after three administrative relegations dropped the Lima giants into the fourth tier.

According to L'Équipe, the club’s social media drive let companies place miniature logos on the traditional white shirt with a red sash for 50 to 150 euros. In three months, 1,057 brands signed up.

New executive director Omar Urteaga, appointed in May, said the club had been on the brink after years of mismanagement and debts of about three million euros. Coach Jesus Alvarez recalled having only 10 balls and struggling for basics because Municipal do not own their facilities.

The special kit has been used in official matches and produced in only 1,935 units, a nod to the club’s 1935 founding and its “Muni” nickname. Urteaga called the response an unexpected, magnificent success that went viral across Latin America and could guide other stricken clubs.

The 43-year-old, who made his money in property and finance, now plans to convert Municipal into a public limited company and invest at least 20 million dollars, 17.3 million euros, over the next decade. Targets include clearing debt within five years, a top-flight return by 2028, 50,000 members, plus a multi-sport complex and a 45,000-seat stadium by 2035.

He wants Municipal to regain status as Peru’s leading academy, taking cues from Spain, Argentina and Independiente del Valle, whose exports include Willian Pacho at PSG, Moisés Caicedo at Chelsea and Piero Hincapié at Arsenal.

A documentary series inspired by Sunderland on Netflix and Wrexham on Disney+ is in development, while the club seek low-cost additions to reach the third tier by year-end. Urteaga cautioned the road is long, but said dreaming big costs nothing.

Source: L'Équipe

“Artificial intelligence was used to assist in creating this article based on reporting from the original source quoted.”