Welcome to our exciting series Passion and Pride, where we dive into the heart of Paraguayan football, spotlighting the 12 teams of the Primera División. In each episode, we introduce you to one club, uncovering their rich histories, fierce rivalries and special moments that have shaped Paraguay’s top league. In part eight of Passion and Pride: General Caballero JLM, an inspiration for the Alto Paraná sporting community.
Club General Caballero JLM’s namegiver
Football club General Caballero JLM (from the city of Juan León Mallorquín ) was founded in 1962 and named after Bernardino Caballero, a Paraguayan military officer and the President of Paraguay from 1880 to 1886. He is known for his role as a general in the War of the Triple Alliance, and as founder of the Colorado Party in 1887 – still one of Paraguay’s major political parties today.
The club’s official name is Club General Bernardino Caballero, but commonly known as General Caballero JLM, to distinguish it from other clubs with similar names in Paraguayan football.
Juan León Mallorquín, city near Ciudad del Este
General Caballero JLM is one of the few teams in the Primera División not based in the capital Asunción. Juan León Mallorquín is a city in Paraguay’s Alto Paraná department, around 260 kilometres east of the capital, near Ciudad del Este. In 1957, Puerto Flor de Lis, later named Puerto Presidente Stroessner, was founded – now Ciudad del Este – and a year later the Juan León Mallorquín colony opened nearby.
The colony’s namegiver, Doctor Juan León Mallorquín, was born in 1882, and died in 1947 while serving as president of the Supreme Court of Justice. He was a Colorado Party representative who was responsible for the expropriation of large amounts of land in Alto Paraná that had been held by landowners, and later became part of the Paraguayan state.
General Caballero JLM’s historic stadium name
The city of Juan León Mallorquín was founded in the area named Ka’arendy, which in 2025 is the name of General Caballero JLM’s stadium. In Guaraní language Ka’a refers to yerba – key herbs in Guaraní culture, still used today for the traditional drink tereré or mate. Rendy means burning, luminous, or resplendent, so “the burning yerba”, or “the resplendent yerba forest,” likely described the lush yerba mate groves that dominated the local landscape, before deforestation in the mid-20th century.
The area’s early name reflects Paraguay’s deep Guaraní linguistic heritage, where place names often tie to flora, or other natural features. To honour this historical name, General Caballero JLM renamed its football stadium in 2021 to Estadio Ka’arendy. The stadium seats around 10,000 people.
An inspiration for Alto Paraná
General Caballero JLM made its debut in Paraguay’s top flight in 2022. This historic achievement followed their victory in the second division (División Intermedia) in 2021, which also secured their historic qualification for the Copa Sudamericana, South America’s second-tier international football competition. The club has since established itself as a consistent presence in the Primera División, serving as an inspiration for the Alto Paraná sporting community.
To follow the club, find General Caballero JLM on Instagram.
Read the previous Episode 7 of Passion and Pride about Sportivo Luqueño, and how a pig became this club’s proud symbol.
