The history of the Peru national football team dates back to the late 19th century, when English sailors and Peruvian travelers returning from England introduced the sport into Peru. It would take the early 20th century, in the year 1927, for Peru to finally create their first official national football team. Introduction of football in Peru Football was brought to Peru by English sailors in the late 19th century during their frequent visits to Callao, which was then an important port of the Pacific Ocean. During their free time, the English sailors played football and invited the local Chalacos (people from Callao) to participate. Allegedly, it was during these early games that the creation of the popular move known as the chalaca (short for "Chalacan Strike"), or bicycle kick, took place. By the 1890s, British sporting clubs in the Peruvian capital such as Lima Cricket and Lawn Tennis were already playing football. Football in Peru grew thanks to its practice by British residents and by Peruvians returning from England. The growing sports rivalry between foreign visitors and local Chalacos soon gained the attention of Peruvians outside the port. Football was originally played outside of formal organizations, such as sport clubs or leagues, but the early 20th century saw the birth of clubs which continued the sport's practice. Among these early clubs of the amateur era were the English community's Lima Cricket and Football Club (Lima, 1859), later followed by the Peruvian Ciclista Lima Association (Lima, 1896), and Atlético Chalaco (Callao, 1899). In the 1900s (decade), the construction of the Panama Canal limited the flow of foreign sailors and travelers into Callao, minimizing the port's influence as a center of cultural diffusion. By then, football clubs and leagues had sprouted in other Peruvian cities, including Lima, Cusco, and Arequipa. Some of the new clubs founded at this time were Alianza Lima (Lima, 1901), Cienciano (Cusco, 1901), FBC Melgar (Arequipa, 1915), the Italian community's Circolo Sportivo Italiano (Lima, 1917), Atletico Grau (Piura, 1919), Alianza Atletico (Sullana, 1920), Universitario de Deportes (Lima, 1924), Sport Boys (Callao, 1927), and Coronel Bolognesi (Tacna, 1929). Peru's most important amateur league, the capital province's "Peruvian Football League", housed the growing rivalry between Callao clubs and those from the nearby capital of Lima. The lack of a centralized organization led to constant conflicts between the teams, and one such conflict resulted in the creation of the Peruvian Football