The fourth most populous city in the Americas, Buenos Aires has had a rich club culture since the mid-19th century. As Argentina became one of the five wealthiest nations on Earth in the early 20th century, the city’s ‘old’ and ‘new’ elites began assembling a variety of elaborate and impressive clubs - many of which survive today.
The Club del Progreso. (Photo credit: Club del Progreso restaurant website.)
The Club del Progreso (“Club of Progress”) is the oldest club in the country, founded by Diego de Alvear in 1852. Its closest equivalent in London is the Reform Club. It moved to its present clubhouse - its fourth - in 1941, the former mansion of the Duhau family, constructed by architects Lanús and Hary. In keeping with the tradition of many clubs in Spain, its restaurant on the ground floor and first floor is open to the public, even though the rest of the building remains members-only. The Club is at Avenida Sarmiento 1334.
The Salón Alhambra of the Club Español. (Photo credit: Club Español website.)
The Club Español was established a few months later in 1852, named the Casino Español for its first 20 years. Founded after the repeal of Argentina’s Immigration Law, it is the oldest Spanish expatriate club in the world. Since 1910, it has been based in its present striking modernist and neo-Mudejar clubhouse. The Club is at Bernardo de Irigoyen 172.
The restaurant of the Club Francés. (Photo credit: Daily Telegraph website.)
The Club Francés was founded in 1866. The Club evolved from informal meetings of the city’s expatriate Frenchmen in the old Café Malakoff; and it has absorbed the Cámara Francesa de Comercio founded in 1884. Since 1941, it has occupied the Vázquez Mansilla mansion. It is primarily included here for the sake of completeness, as it now operates as a hotel rather than a private club. Nevertheless, in this incarnation it preserves the clubhouse architecture and fittings. The Club is at Rodríguez Peña 1832.
The main hallway of the Círculo Militar. (Photo credit: Círculo Militar website.)
The Círculo Militar was formed as the Military Club in 1881 to closen ties among the city’s military elites, switching to its present name in 1900. Based in the Palacio Paz (“Peace Palace”) since 1938, its capacious facilities include a library, and a military museum. Today its membership includes members of the Argentinian army, navy and air force. The Club is at Avenida Santa Fe 750.
The main entrance to the Jockey Club. (Photo credit: Jockey Club website.)
The Jockey Club is a men-only club founded by President Carlos Pellegrini in 1882, as a club for industrialists encompassing the country’s political and business elites. The Club includes a city clubhouse, and a country club with two golf courses. The old city clubhouse was razed to the ground by supporters of Juan Perón in 1953, as a gesture of defiance at the country’s ruling class. The Club is at Avenida Alvear 1345.
The ballroom of the Centro Naval. (Photo credit: La Nación website.)
The Centro Naval also dates to 1882, and is a sporting club for naval officers. It enjoys multiple clubhouses, including a city clubhouse in downtown Buenos Aires, one in Núñez (offering hockey, rugby and rowing), one in Olivos (offering fencing, football, martial arts, tennis and yachting), and one in Tigre (offering rowing, tennis and yachting). The Club is at Florida 801.
The clubhouse of the Yacht Club Argentino. (Photo credit: Turismo Buenos Aires website.)
The Yacht Club Argentino was founded in 1883, and is the city’s oldest dedicated yacht club. Since its earliest days, it has organised regattas and cruises. The distinctive clubhouse designed by Edouard Le Monnier, opened in 1915, renovated in 1930, and restored in 1995, is a National Historic Landmark. The Club is at Cecilia Grierson 500.
The salon of the Círculo de Armas. (Photo credit: User “Ale”, on Google Images.)
The Círculo de Armas remains a gentlemen’s club, founded in 1885, originally as the Club de Esgrima (Fencing Club). In its modern incarnation, the weapons are purely decorative, and the emphasis is on sports and gymnasium facilities. The Club is at Corrientes Avenue 671.
The main clubhouse of the Hurlingham Club. (Photo credit: Hurlingham Club website.)
The Hurlingham Club was founded by expatriate Englishman John Ravenscroft in 1888, and was based on London’s Hurlingham Club, which combined the ambience of a traditional London club with the extensive amenities of an American country club. Today, the Club offers its members golf, polo, cricket, tennis and squash. The Club is located in the suburbs, at Teniente General Julio A. Roca 1411.
The Club de Pescadores’ coastal clubhouse. (Photo credit: Turismo Buenos Aires website.)
The Club de Pescadores (Fishermen’s Club) was founded in 1903, although its original home was destroyed in a storm after just two years. Since 1937 it has occupied a distinctive building on a pier in the River Plate, which is a designated National Historic Monument. The Club is at Avenida Sarmiento Nº y.
The central clubhouse of the Club Universitario de Buenos Aires (C.U.B.A.). (Photo credit: Club Universitario de Buenos Aires website.)
The Club Universitario de Buenos Aires (C.U.B.A.) was founded at the same time as the University of Buenos Aires in 1918; it was initially an archetypal gentlemen’s club with billards. Today, while it maintains a cultural athenaeum and library, the focus is overwhelmingly on some two-dozen sports, including a range of ball games, martial arts, swimming, golf, and even rock climbing. The Club is spread across three sites, with its main city clubhouse being at Viamonte 1560.
The Club Sirio Libanés. (Photo credit: Destino San Juan website.)
The Club Sirio Libanés (Syrian Lebanese Club) of Buenos Aires is an expatriate club founded in 1932; it enjoys close links with the Asociacon Akarense founded five years earlier to support Syrians and Lebanese expats worldwide. Today, the emphasis is as much on sports. The Club is split across two sites, with its main city clubhouse being at Ayacucho 1496.
Also worthy of mention are numerous historic institutions which are primarily sporting clubs, but with a prominent social side as well. These include the Buenos Aires Cricket & Rugby Club in the northern suburbs (which also offers hockey) dating to 1864, and the Club Harrods Gath & Chaves, Buenos Aires dates to 1918, and is a merger of two separate athletic clubs by employees of two department stores who were keen to bolster the athletic life of the city, the Buenos Aires branch of Harrods, and the Gath & Chaves store. Neither shop survives, but the club continues to this day.
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I didn't know anything about these beautiful places in Buenos Aires. Montevideo might have hidden special places too, but not sure