Daniel Vaca

Daniel Vaca (born 3 November 1978) is a Bolivian football coach and former player who played as a goalkeeper. He is the current president of The Strongest's football committee.

Vaca played for The Strongest for a full decade, from 2011 until 2021. He also earned 16 caps for the Bolivian national team in the 2010s.

Early life During his youth, Vaca played as a forward, making his debut under the sticks at the age of 13, in an inter-neighborhood championship final organized by the Tahuichi Academy, only because the team's starting goalkeeper was not allowed to go due to a storm. As a forward, he was able to anticipate the opposing attackers, making several saves to help his side win the final, after which the Tahuichi Academy gave him a scholarship to train as a goalkeeper, where he was taught the basics of that position by Erwin Frey, a longtime Blooming goalkeeper. On 4 August 2017, he made his 300th appearance for The Strongest in a match that included a hat-trick and the debut of three young players. Five days later, on 9 August, Vaca made his 50th Copa Libertadores appearance in a loss to Lanús, becoming the goalkeeper with the most such appearances in Strongest's history.

On 27 October 2018, he made his 297th appearance for The Strongest in a match against Destroyers, surpassing Luis Galarza as the player with the most appearances for the club. The following month, on 30 November, Vaca made his 300th appearance for The Strongest in Bolivian tournaments in a match against Bolívar, wearing the captain's armband in the absence of the red-carded Pablo Escobar and helping his side to a 1–1 draw.

On 30 September 2019, Vaca made his 400th appearance for The Strongest in a 6–1 league thrashing of his former club Blooming. He won the award for Best Goalkeeper of the 2019 season, in which he started in 51 of the 52 league matches, missing only one because of yellow cards accumulation. By late 2020, he was one of only three 40-year-old players in the Bolivian top-flight, the others being Carlos Saucedo and Martín Palavicini.

On 13 March 2021, Vaca made his 439th appearances with the Strongest in a top-tier league match against Independiente, surpassing Escobar's tally of 438 to became the player with the most official matches in the club's history, and two months later, on 18 May, he made his 56th Copa Libertadores appearance for The Strongest in a 2–1 victory over Brazilian side Santos, surpassing Escobar's tally of 55 to became the player with the most such appearances in the club's history. On 25 July, he started in his 41st Bolivian Superclásico against Bolívar, becoming, at the age of 42 years, 8 months, and 22 days, the oldest-ever player in the history of the Bolivian Superclásico, breaking a 53-year-old record set by Víctor Ugarte in 1968, aged 42 years, 5 months, and 8 days.

In early 2022, Vaca left the club after 11 years, having won 5 titles, including three Bolivian top-flight titles (2012–13, 2013–14, and 2016–17), and playing in 10 consecutive editions of the Copa Libertadores.

Royal Pari On 9 February 2022, the 43-year-old Vaca signed for Royal Pari, with whom he played in the 2022 Copa Sudamericana,

International career In total, Vaca earned 16 caps for the Bolivian national team between 2010 and 2019, the last of which on 10 September, in a friendly match against Ecuador, becoming, at the age of 40 years, 10 months, and 8 days, the oldest-ever player in the history of the national team, surpassed Carlos Trucco's record set in the 1994 FIFA World Cup at the age of 40 years, 3 months, and 5 days.

In January 2022, Vaca, now a free agent, was surprisingly called up by coach César Farías for three matches during that month, including two World Cup qualifiers, becoming, at the age of 43, the oldest player in any CONMEBOL squad; he remained an unused substitute in every game.

Personal life In 2002, Vaca married Marcela del Río Ossandon, with whom he had four children: Daniela, Gabriela, Mathías, and Adrián.