Erwin Branco Ampuero Vera (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈbɾaŋko amˈpweɾo]; born 19 July 1993), known as Branco Ampuero, is a Chilean professional footballer who plays for Chilean club Universidad Católica as a centre-back.
 Ampuero in 2023 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Erwin Branco Ampuero Vera | ||
| Date of birth | 19 July 1993 | ||
| Place of birth | Carelmapu, Chile | ||
| Height | 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||
| Position | Centre-back | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Universidad Católica | ||
| Number | 19 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –2010 | Deportes Puerto Montt | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2010–2014 | Deportes Puerto Montt | 79 | (6) |
| 2014–2021 | Deportes Antofagasta | 115 | (3) |
| 2017–2018 | → Universidad Católica (loan) | 27 | (0) |
| 2021– | Universidad Católica | 95 | (3) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2017– | Chile | 2 | (0) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 6 July 2025 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 8 February 2025 | |||
Club career
editHe made his professional debut in 2010 with Deportes Puerto Montt. His exceptional aerial ability secured him a consistent starting role in the majority of matches for the "Albiverdes." Driven by his significant potential and strong performances at Puerto Montt, Branco took a major step forward in mid-2014 when he was signed by Deportes Antofagasta. During this period, he maintained remarkable consistency and further refined his technical skills, establishing himself as one of the squad's core strengths.
Universidad Católica
editOn June 21, 2017, Universidad Católica officially announced the defender’s arrival to the squad. Following the return of the season-long tournament format, he celebrated the 2018 Primera División title with the club.[1]
Due to limited playing time with Universidad Católica, Ampuero was sent on loan to Deportes Antofagasta for the 2019 and 2020 seasons. Upon his return to the club in 2021, Ampuero achieved further success, winning the 2020 Supercopa,[2] the 2021 Supercopa, and the 2021 Primera División championship.[3][4]
Following his consistent performances for the club, Ampuero has regularly renewed his contract with Universidad Católica. At the start of the 2026 season, he signed a contract extension, securing his stay at the club through 2027.[5]
International career
editHe was called up by Chile’s head coach, Juan Antonio Pizzi, for the 2017 China Cup friendly tournament held in January.[6] He did not feature in the semifinal match against Croatia on January 11, which ended in a 1–1 draw before "La Roja" secured a 4–1 victory in a penalty shootout.
Four days later, he appeared in the tournament final, entering the pitch in the 91st minute as a substitute for Leonardo Valencia. Wearing the number 4 jersey,[7] he participated in the match against Iceland, which Chile won 1–0 with a goal by Ángelo Sagal. With this victory, he and his team were crowned 2017 China Cup champions.[8][9]
Career statistics
editClub
edit- As of match played 4 April 2026[10]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | League cup[b] | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Puerto Montt | 2010 | Primera B | 4 | 1 | — | — | — | — | 4 | 1 | ||||
| 2011 | Primera B | 11 | 0 | 3 | 1 | — | — | — | 14 | 1 | ||||
| 2012 | Primera B | 24 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | 27 | 0 | ||||
| 2013 | Segunda División | 20 | 3 | — | — | — | — | 20 | 3 | |||||
| 2013–14 | Segunda División | 20 | 2 | — | — | — | — | 20 | 2 | |||||
| Total | 79 | 6 | 6 | 1 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 85 | 7 | |||
| Deportes Antofagasta | 2014-15 | Primera División | 21 | 0 | 6 | 0 | — | — | — | 27 | 0 | |||
| 2015-16 | Primera División | 26 | 0 | 6 | 1 | — | — | — | 32 | 1 | ||||
| 2016-17 | Primera División | 25 | 2 | — | — | — | — | 25 | 2 | |||||
| 2019 | Primera División | 16 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 18 | 0 | ||||
| 2020 | Primera División | 27 | 1 | — | — | — | — | 27 | 1 | |||||
| Total | 115 | 3 | 14 | 1 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 129 | 4 | |||
| Universidad Católica (loan) | 2017 | Primera División | 11 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 12 | 0 | |||
| 2018 | Primera División | 16 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 18 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 27 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30 | 0 | |||
| Universidad Católica | 2020 | Primera División | — | — | — | — | 1[c] | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||||
| 2021 | Primera División | 8 | 0 | — | — | 3[d] | 0 | 1[c] | 0 | 12 | 0 | |||
| 2022 | Primera División | 21 | 0 | 6 | 1 | — | 4[e] | 0 | 1[c] | 0 | 32 | 1 | ||
| 2023 | Primera División | 23 | 0 | 5 | 0 | — | 1[f] | 0 | — | 29 | 0 | |||
| 2024 | Primera División | 27 | 3 | 3 | 0 | — | 1[f] | 0 | — | 31 | 3 | |||
| 2025 | Primera División | 29 | 1 | 5 | 0 | — | 1[f] | 0 | — | 35 | 1 | |||
| 2026 | Primera División | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2[c] | 0 | 13 | 0 | |
| Total | 116 | 4 | 19 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 153 | 5 | ||
| Career total | 337 | 13 | 42 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 397 | 16 | ||
- ↑ Includes Copa Chile
- ↑ Includes Copa de la Liga
- 1 2 3 4 Appearance(s) in the Supercopa de Chile
- ↑ Appearance(s) in the Copa Libertadores
- ↑ 2 appearances in Copa Libertadores, 2 in Copa Sudamericana
- 1 2 3 Appearances in Copa Sudamericana
International
edit- As of match played 8 February 2025
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chile | 2017 | 1 | 0 |
| 2025 | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 2 | 0 | |
Honours
editReferences
edit- ↑ "Universidad Católica: José Pedro Fuenzalida, la figura del campeón". Diario AS (in Spanish). 2 December 2018. Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ Lucay, Carlos González (21 March 2021). "El Huracán del Nacional: la tarde inolvidable de Gonzalo Tapia". La Tercera (in Spanish). Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ Reyes, Luis (4 December 2021). "Los tetracampeones del mundo: la UC se une a una lista de gigantes". Diario AS (in Spanish). Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ "Universidad Católica es el primer tetracampeón anual del fútbol chileno con una campaña histórica". RedGol (in Spanish). 3 December 2021. Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ Sebastian (5 December 2025). "¡Renovados! Zampedri, Medel y Ampuero continúan junto a la UC". Cruzados (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 19 December 2025. Retrieved 12 December 2025.
- ↑ "Branco Ampuero es parte de la nómina de Pizzi para la China Cup | soyantofagasta.cl". soychile.cl (in European Spanish). Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ "Islandia - Chile 0:1". mx.soccerway.com (in Mexican Spanish). Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ Comunicaciones, Compañia Chilena de. "Marcador Virtual: Chile vs. Islandia". Cooperativa.cl (in Spanish). Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ 24horas. "Chile supera a Islandia y se corona campeón de la China Cup 2017". www.24horas.cl (in Spanish). Retrieved 10 February 2026.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ↑ Branco Ampuero at Soccerway. Retrieved 31 December 2018.
External links
edit- Branco Ampuero at BDFA (in Spanish)
- Branco Ampuero at Soccerway
- Branco Ampuero at National-Football-Teams.com
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