Crucero del Norte · History

Club Mutual Crucero del Norte is a football club from Garupá, in the Argentine province of Misiones, and has played in the Torneo Regional Federal Amateur since 2026. It is nicknamed «el Colectivero» (“the Bus Driver”) and plays in yellow and black. The club takes its name from Crucero del Norte, the long-distance bus company owned by the Koropeski family that created it. In 2015 it played in the Argentine Primera División, after climbing through every tier of the lower leagues in little more than a decade.

Origins in a bus company

Sources trace the club's roots to 1989, when the bus company's staff mutual association was set up. The football team took shape later, driven by company executives and the Koropeski family, who announced its affiliation to the Argentine Football Association in 2003. The official debut came on 28 June 2003, a 2-0 win over Huracán de Posadas. In 2004 the club won the Apertura of the Liga Posadeña de Fútbol, which earned a place in the Torneo del Interior. In 2005 it won promotion from there to the Torneo Argentino B.

From Argentino B to Primera B Nacional

The rise was swift. On 14 June 2009 the club reached the Torneo Argentino A after beating Alvarado of Mar del Plata in the final, winning 1-0 in Posadas and drawing 0-0 away. It stayed at that level until 2012, the year of its next jump. On 30 June 2012 a 1-0 win over Guillermo Brown in Puerto Madryn brought its first promotion to the Primera B Nacional, the country's second tier. Between 2011 and 2019 the club also took part in eight editions of the Copa Argentina.

Promotion in 2014 and the top-flight season

Crucero del Norte spent five seasons in the Primera B Nacional across two spells. On 30 November 2014, in the second-to-last round, it beat Patronato of Paraná 3-0 at home in Garupá to clinch promotion to the Primera División. Sarmiento of Junín went up the same day. Crucero became the first club from Misiones to win promotion to the AFA top flight, and the province had gone 29 years without a team in the first division. The 2015 campaign was an uphill struggle. On 4 October 2015 a 1-0 defeat to Boca Juniors at La Bombonera, decided by an own goal, sealed relegation with three rounds still to play. It was the club's first relegation and its only season in the top flight.

Relegations and the return to amateur football

Back in the Primera B Nacional, the team played the 2016 season and the 2016-17 campaign. On 25 July 2017 its relegation to the Torneo Federal A was confirmed, alongside Douglas Haig of Pergamino. It spent eight straight seasons in that third tier, from 2017-18 to 2025. In the 2025 edition it finished bottom of Zone D. Then, on 23 August 2025, it lost 4-1 to Boca Unidos of Corrientes at Santa Inés and dropped into the Torneo Regional Federal Amateur. It was the first time the club had been out of national competition since reaching it.

Stadium and rivalries

The club plays its home games at the Estadio Comandante Andrés Guaçurarí, in the Santa Inés district of Garupá. In its early years it played at the Bartolomé Mitre stadium in Posadas. Its main rival is Guaraní Antonio Franco of Posadas, the opponent in Misiones' modern derby. It also has regional rivalries with Boca Unidos of Corrientes and Sarmiento of Resistencia, in the Litoral region. Its honours include the Liga Posadeña Apertura titles of 2004 and 2010. In 2026, in the Torneo Regional Federal Amateur, Guaraní won the renewed derby 2-0. Crucero del Norte went out in the group stage after a 4-2 home defeat to Barrio Obrero at Santa Inés.