Deportivo Rayo Zuliano

Rayo Zuliano
Full nameDeportivo Rayo Zuliano
Nickname(s)Azul Amarillo
Founded2005; 20 years ago (2005)
GroundEstadio José Pachencho Romero
Capacity40,800
ChairmanJavier Portillo[1]
ManagerJavier Villafráz
LeaguePrimera División
2024Primera División, 11th of 14

Deportivo Rayo Zuliano is a Venezuelan professional football club based in Maracaibo. Founded in 2005, the club play in the Venezuelan Primera División, hosting their home matches at the Estadio José Pachencho Romero.

History

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Founded in 2005, Deportivo Rayo Zuliano played in the 2005–06 edition of the Torneo Aspirantes [es], the third division in the country, before spending a year inactive. The club later entered the inaugural season of the Venezuelan Tercera División, narrowly missing out on promotion to Segunda División B in 2007–08 and then achieving mid-table campaigns in 2008–09 and 2009–10.[2]

In 2010, Rayo Zuliano ceased to play in the Tercera División, and only returned to a professional status in 2021, after merging with Atlético Furrial [es] and being admitted in the year's Segunda División.[3] After an eighth position finish in their group in 2021, the club led their group in 2022, but were knocked out in the promotion phase.

On 12 December 2022, it was announced that Rayo Zuliano would merge with Primera División side Zulia, taking their place in the top tier.[4] The merger was officially confirmed on 28 January 2023.[5] Rayo Zuliano were able to place eighth in their first Primera División campaign, which allowed them to qualify for the 2024 Copa Sudamericana.[6]

Current squad

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As of 9 February, 2025 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
1 GK Venezuela VEN Luis Corredor
2 DF Venezuela VEN Yvan Bello
3 DF Venezuela VEN Carlos Lujano
4 DF Venezuela VEN Hermes Rodriguez
5 DF Uruguay URU Matías Ferreira
7 FW Venezuela VEN Heiderber Ramirez
8 MF Venezuela VEN Edwin Castro
9 FW Venezuela VEN César Salazar
10 FW Venezuela VEN Andrés Montero
11 MF Venezuela VEN Kenin Montiel
12 GK Colombia COL Sergio Avellaneda
14 MF Venezuela VEN Andrusw Araque
16 MF Nigeria NGA Gideon Zuma
17 FW Venezuela VEN Cristian Maldonado
18 FW Venezuela VEN Luis Enrique Paz
No. Pos. Nation Player
19 FW Venezuela VEN Gilmar Martínez
21 MF Venezuela VEN Cristian Romero
22 DF Venezuela VEN Angel Faria
23 FW Venezuela VEN Jose Luis Ochoa
25 DF Venezuela VEN Jaider Julio
27 MF Venezuela VEN Jhon Mejia
30 GK Venezuela VEN Rafael Ramírez
32 DF Venezuela VEN Albert Barboza
33 FW Venezuela VEN Jesús Blois
34 DF Venezuela VEN Fernando Diaz
88 MF Venezuela VEN Luis Blanco
99 FW Venezuela VEN Richard Blanco
DF Argentina ARG Matías Fernández
MF Venezuela VEN Luis Urbina

Managers

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References

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  1. ^ "Deportivo Rayo Zuliano inicia conformación de su equipo femenino" [Deportivo Rayo Zuliano start making their women's team] (in Spanish). Deportivo Rayo Zuliano. 8 June 2022. Archived from the original on 29 January 2023. Retrieved 29 January 2023.
  2. ^ "Deportivo Rayo Zuliano" (in Spanish). Foro Vinotinto. Archived from the original on 29 January 2023. Retrieved 29 January 2023.
  3. ^ "Directivos de Atlético Furrial expusieron a Fidel Madroñero como mala paga" [Board members of Atlético Furrial exposed Fidel Madroñero as the one who did not pay] (in Spanish). La Patilla. 27 December 2022. Archived from the original on 29 January 2023. Retrieved 29 January 2023.
  4. ^ "Extraoficial: Deportivo Rayo Zuliano y Zulia Fútbol Club conformarían una sola institución" [Unofficial: Deportivo Rayo Zuliano and Zulia Fútbol Club would form a single institution] (in Spanish). Versión Final. 13 December 2022. Archived from the original on 29 January 2023. Retrieved 29 January 2023.
  5. ^ "¡CONFIRMARON FUSIÓN CON EL ZULIA FC! Rayo Zuliano llegó a primera división de la liga Futve" [THEY CONFIRMED MERGER WITH ZULIA FC! Rayo Zuliano reached the Liga Futve's first division] (in Spanish). Red Digital Noticias. 29 January 2023. Archived from the original on 29 January 2023. Retrieved 29 January 2023.
  6. ^ "Caracas FC consiguió el último boleto a la fase final y la Libertadores" [Caracas FC claimed the last final stage and Libertadores berth] (in Spanish). La Vinotinto. 8 October 2023. Archived from the original on 29 June 2024. Retrieved 7 April 2024.
  7. ^ "Elvis Martínez asume la dirección técnica del Deportivo Rayo Zuliano en la Liga FutVe 2" [Elvis Martínez takes over the technical direction of Deportivo Rayo Zuliano in Liga FutVe 2] (in Spanish). Balonazos. 30 September 2022. Archived from the original on 29 January 2023. Retrieved 29 January 2023.
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