By OkayGoal 
Atlético Madrid has completed the purchase of half of Atlético Fútbol Club, the Guayaquil side that won Ecuador’s Serie B in its first season. The deal gives the Spanish club its first affiliate in South America before the Ecuadorian team steps up to Serie A in 2027.
The announcement went up on the Madrid club’s website at 19:00 on 13 November 2026.
The move had been signalled earlier in the year. On Friday 20 February 2026, Atlético said it would share sporting, institutional and commercial expertise with Atlético FC and might take a stake in the following months, El Comercio reported.
Regarded as Ecuador’s largest non-profit organisation, the Junta de Beneficencia de Guayaquil operates in all 24 of the country’s provinces.
An unusual route into Serie B ended in promotion
The club’s route into Serie B was unusual. It took over the place of Atlético Vinotinto, which could not use it because its affiliate Vinotinto FC had been relegated. The team also changed its name from Atlético JBG to Atlético FC.
Promotion came on 15 October 2026 with a 1-0 win over Independiente Juniors. Fidel Martínez scored the goal. A week later, on Thursday 22 October, a 2-2 draw against Cuenca Juniors at the Estadio Alejandro Serrano sealed the title. That match was the ninth round of the promotion hexagonal.
Across the campaign the side scored 39 goals and conceded 21. It became the 37th different club to win Ecuador’s Serie B. The team is coached by Carlos Santamarina, who comes from Atlético’s academy.
The promotion also reshapes the city’s football map. Guayaquil will have four clubs in the 2027 Serie A: Atlético FC, Barcelona SC, Emelec and Guayaquil City.
The Guayaquil deal extends Atlético’s network into South America
Mexico and Canada already host clubs in the Madrid side’s network of linked teams, through Atlético de San Luis and Atlético Ottawa.
The investment builds on years of groundwork in Ecuador. Atlético and the Junta signed their original strategic agreement on Monday 24 July 2023 at the charity’s sports complex. Under that deal, the club’s academy would apply its coaching model to the Junta’s football division. At the time, that division served 2,500 children from vulnerable backgrounds.
In June 2026 the club put the number of young players at more than 14,000. That same month, chief executive Miguel Ángel Gil Marín visited the academy’s Guayaquil base. With the Junta’s delegation, he watched an Atlético FC match and greeted Santamarina.
For Atlético, the stake creates a direct link between that youth work and a senior professional team.
The board holds its first meeting next week. It will elect a president proposed by Atlético and appoint a general manager.