Guadalajara partied without reservation Sunday after its fabled soccer team, the Chivas, won a record 12th national championship, defeating the Monterrey Tigres 2-1 in the final game of the Liga MX 2017 Clausura tournament.

The victory unleashed a celebration of massive proportions, with an estimated 100,000 people descending on the Minerva Glorieta to welcome the team around midnight.

Pockets of fans took to the streets in towns and cities throughout the country to celebrate Chivas’ first title in more than a decade.

Chivas is the only team in the Mexican professional league that refuses to hire foreign players.

With the Liga MX title, Chivas completed an historic double after winning the Copa MX in March. 

Chivas is now level with Club America on 12 Mexican championship titles each.

Chivas and Tigres squared up at the Omnlife Stadium in Zapopan Sunday after tying 2-2 in the first leg of the final last Thursday.

The raucous crowd believed the title was done and dusted after Alan Pulido and Jose Juan Vazquez scored to give Chivas a 2-0 lead after 70 minutes. But Ismael Sosa then pulled a goal back for the visitors in the 88th minute, providing for a nail-biting final few minutes.

As captain Carlos Salcido lifted the trophy in the stadium, celebrations got underway all over the city.

Drivers honked their horns, victory chants were entoned in bars and a multitude made its way to the Minerva, where 400 police officers had been waiting along with many fans who had watched the game on a large screen.  To one side of the traffic circle, a stage had been erected earlier in the day in preparation for a Chivas victory.  The team bus finally made its way through the throng around midnight and the players were able to hoist the trophy aloft in front of thousands of adoring fans. 

Chivas’ triumph was vindication for owner Jorge Vergara, who has been vilified by fans in the past for his poor leadership of the team, considered the most popular in Mexico.  Vergara said the victory was “only the start,” and that he now expected even greater things from his club on the international stage. 

Argentine coach Matias Almeyda also deserves plaudits for the savvy way he has managed the team, bringing in young players alongside veterans such as Salcido.  The win also disproves many analysts predictions that no team can win the Mexican title nowadays without importing foreign stars.

Photos by Arturo Campos Cedillo