The Club Atlético Bella Vista is a Uruguayan soccer team founded on the 4th of October, 1920. In 1981, the club competed in the Copa Libertadores de América. The club played in the same group as Peñarol, of Uruguay, and Estudiantes de Mérida and Portuguesa FC, of Venezuela. The club was eliminated in the first stage of the competition. In 1985, the club competed in the Copa Libertadores again. Bella Vista was in the same group of Peñarol, and two Chilean clubs, Colo-Colo and Magallanes, but were again eliminated at the first stage. In 1990, Bella Vista won the Uruguayan league, and gained the right to enter the following year's Copa Libertadores. In the following year, in 1991, the club competed in the Copa Libertadores, and was in the same group as Nacional, of Uruguay, and Flamengo and Corinthians, of Brazil. The club finished in the last place of the group. In 1993's Copa Libertadores, Bella Vista was in the same group as Nacional, of Uruguay, and El Nacional and Barcelona, of Ecuador. After a poor campaign, the club was again eliminated in the first stage. In 1999, the club, after an absence of six years, returned to Copa Libertadores de América. Bella Vista was in a group containing Nacional, of Uruguay, Estudiantes de Mérida, of Venezuela, and Monterrey, of Mexico. The club finished in third in the first stage, and qualified to the second stage, where they defeated Universidad Católica, of Chile. However, in the quarterfinals, Bella Vista was eliminated by Deportivo Cali, of Colombia. It was the club's best campaign ever in the Copa Libertadores. In 2000, Bella Vista competed again in the Copa Libertadores de América, and was grouped alongside Bolivians Bolívar, Atlético Mineiro, of Brazil, and Cobreloa, of Chile. The club was eliminated in the first stage of the competition. In 2011, the club competed in the Copa Sudamericana in which they were eliminated on the First Round by Universidad Católica
The Bella Vista jersey represents the Vatican flag, half yellow and half white. This is why the club is nicknamed the "papales", the ones who follow the papal, el papado, the Vatican authority. Some versions say the origin can be different. Due to the divided fanaticism between Peñarol and Nacional of the club's former authorities, they decided the jersey to have the predominant colors of the two Uruguayan big clubs. Note that this is exactly what Arsenal of Sarandí from Argentina did when designing its jersey, light blue and red, due to the authorities of the club being Independiente and Racing of Avellaneda supporters.
