José Leandro Andrade

He was nicknamed "The Black Marvel" (maravilla negra). During his prime he was regarded as one of the finest footballers in the world, contributing to the Uruguay national football team's domination of international football during the 1920s, winning two consecutive Olympic Gold Medals and then the first FIFA World Cup.

José Leandro Andrade

José Andrade in 1926
Personal information
Full name	José Leandro Andrade Quiroz
Date of birth	(1901-11-22)22 November 1901
Place of birth	Salto, Uruguay
Date of death	5 October 1957(1957-10-05) (aged 55)
Place of death	Montevideo, Uruguay
Height	1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)
Position(s)	Defensive midfielder
Youth career
	Misiones
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1921–1923	Bella Vista	71	(7)
1924–1930	Nacional	105	(29)
1931–1935	Peñarol	88	(3)
1933	Atlanta	1	(0)
1934	Lanús-Talleres	2	(0)
	Wanderers	17	(0)
Total		284	(39)
International career
1923–1930	Uruguay	34	(1)
Medal record Men's football Representing  Uruguay Olympic Games 1924 Paris Team 1928 Amsterdam Team FIFA World Cup Winner 1930 Uruguay South American Championship Winner 1923 Uruguay Winner 1924 Uruguay Winner 1926 Chile Runner-up 1927 Peru 1929 Argentina
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

 

Andrade was born in Salto in 1901 to an Argentine mother (Anastasia Quiroz, also spelled Vázquez). José Ignacio Andrade, who is believed to have been his father, was listed on his birth certificate as a witness. The older Andrade, who was 98 years old at the time of José Leandro Andrade's birth, had been an expert in African magic and is believed to have been an African-born slave who had escaped from Brazil.

At an early age Andrade moved to the Palermo barrio in Montevideo where he lived with an aunt.

Prior to the introduction of professional football in Uruguay he worked in a number of jobs. He at one time worked as a carnival musician playing the drums, violin and the tambourine, and at another time led the drums corp for carnival comparsa Libertadores de Africa. At various times in his life he also worked as a shoeshiner and as a newspaper salesman.

Club career

As a teenager Andrade played for Montevideo club Misiones.

In the early 1920s Andrade was signed by Bella Vista, where he played 71 matches and scored seven goals. It was at Bella Vista that he was first selected for the national team.

Andrade later moved to Nacional where he won four Uruguayan Championships and three national cups.

Andrade transferred to Peñarol in 1930 where he played only 1 match over the next few years. He had trained with Peñarol as a teenager but had not been accepted.

He also had a brief stint with Wanderers in Uruguay.

International career

Andrade earned 34 appearances with la Celeste Olimpica scoring one goal between 1923 and 1930.

South American Championship

Andrade played in South American Championship (now known as Copa América) winning teams in 1923, 1924 and 1926.

1924 Olympics

Andrade won his first Olympic gold medal at the 1924 Olympic football tournament in Paris. He was recognised as being the first black international football player to play Olympic football. He was nicknamed The Black Marvel and The Black Pearl, the latter a name later used in reference to Pelé.

In reaction to the 1924 Olympic win the Uruguayan team were challenged to a two match series by Argentina. In the second match at the Estadio Sportivo Barracas in Buenos Aires Andrade was pelted with stones by the Argentine crowd to which Andrade and the rest of the Uruguayan team responded by throwing the stones back. In the ensuing riot a member of his team was arrested and the Uruguayans refused to play out the remainder of the match.

1928 Olympics

In 1928 he won his second Olympic gold medal at the 1928 Olympics in Amsterdam. During the semi-final match against Italy Andrade collided with a goal post, seriously injuring an eye. This later deteriorated to the point that he became blind in that eye.

1930 FIFA World Cup

Despite not being at his peak he managed to be one of Uruguay's best players as they won the 1930 World Cup. At the end of the tournament he was selected in the All-Star team. In 1994, he was selected by France Football as number ten in their World Cup Top-100.

A plaque was placed at the Estadio Centenario in honour of his achievements.

Andrade was also credited with being an intelligent and honest player who never celebrated his goals. He was a dynamic, fast and highly technical player who was able to dominate the pitch without the physicality of many of his teammates.

After touring nine European countries with Andrade's Uruguayan club side Nacional, in 1925, they attracted a total of over 800,000 spectators. Andrade played half of that tour when he was told by a doctor in Brussels that he had contracted syphilis. He disappeared to Paris upon hearing the news. Andrade did not return to Montevideo until two months later; there a reporter said he had lost weight and seemed in a state of depression. He then underwent a course of treatment. Andrade had lost some pace but none of his skill and went on to secure international titles for Uruguay. It was said that he had gone blind in one eye after a semi-final against Italy, Andrade had run into a goalpost and it was speculated that the injury was so serious he was later blinded in one eye. Others said his blindness and deteriorated health was caused by syphilis.

Andrade was a guest at the 1950 FIFA World Cup when Uruguay won their second world championship. His nephew Víctor Rodríguez Andrade, a member of the 1950 team, had adopted Andrade as his second surname in honour of Andrade. In 1956 German journalist Fritz Hack searched Montevideo for Andrade for six days. He found him living in terrible conditions in a basement of a flat. Andrade was too intoxicated to understand Hack's questions. Within a year, Andrade died, penniless and alcoholic, in an asylum in Montevideo at age 55.

Club

• Nacional
  • Primera División Uruguaya
    • Winner: 1924
    • Runner-up: 1929
  • Copa José Serrato
    • Winner: 1923
• Peñarol
  • Primera División Uruguaya
    • Winner: 1932, 1935
    • Runner-up: 1933, 1934

International

• Uruguay
  • Olympic Games
    • Gold medal: 1924, 1928
  • FIFA World Cup
    • Winner: 1930
  • South American Championship
    • Winner: 1923, 1924, 1926
    • Runner-up: 1927

Individual

• IFFHS Football Player of the Century: 69th
• South American Championship: Best Player 1926
• FIFA World Cup: Bronze Ball 1930
• FIFA World Cup: All-Star Team 1930
• France Football's World Cup Top-100 1930–1990: 10th
• IFFHS Uruguayan Men's Dream Team