“Jugamos como nunca, perdimos como siempre” (“We played like never before, but we lost as we always do”) is a familiar saying of Mexico’s World Cup soccer teams, as well as other Spanish-speaking soccer teams. “Jugamos como nunca, aunque perdemos como siempre” was cited in print in 1977.
 
Alfredo di Stéfano, the Argentine-Spanish footballer associated with Real Madrid, is often credited with the saying.
 
   
Wikipedia: Alfredo Di Stéfano
Alfredo Stéfano di Stéfano Laulhé (Spanish pronunciation: [alˈfɾeðo ði (e)sˈtefano] is a former Argentine-Spanish footballer and coach, widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time. He is most associated with Real Madrid and was instrumental in their domination of the European Champions’ Cup during the 1950s, a period in which the club won the trophy in five consecutive seasons from 1956. Along with Francisco Gento, he was one of only two players to play a part in all five victories. Di Stéfano played international football mostly for Spain, but he also played for Argentina and Colombia.
     
Google Books
Juego de Damas
By Rafael Humberto Moreno Durán
Barcelona: Seix Barral
1977
Pg. 271:
Cómo me hace pensar esto en nuestros pequeños triunfos, casi todos morales, pues al igual de lo que ocurre con nuestros deportistas jugamos como nunca, aunque perdemos como siempre… —Aquí tienes tu vasito.
     
Google Books
Guión
Issues 402-419
1985  
Pg. ?:
Ya no se escucha la famosa frase usada en el fútbol de “jugamos como nunca, perdimos como siempre”.
 
Google Books
El mundial de los aztecas
BY Fausto Zambrano Zúñiga
Quito, Ecuador : [s.n.]
1986
Pg. 35:
Jugamos como nunca y perdimos como siempre… ¡qué ironía!
 
Google Books
Lauros de victoria
By Hefraín Ortíz Cevallos
Quito: Fundación Paz: FESO
1993
Pg. 6:
Frases como “últimos hemos de quedar’‘, “jugamos como nunca, pero perdimos como siempre”, son santo y seña de un espíritu derrotista, de una percepción pesimista del futuro y de la capacidad del ecuatoriano para enfrentar desafios y combios.
 
El Tiempo       
CAFÉ CON AROMA DE COLOMBIA
(...)
Jugamos como nunca y perdimos como siempre ha acabado por ser el lema de nuestros futbolistas, de nuestros boxeadores, de nuestros ciclistas posteriores a Lucho Herrera.
(With the name of moral victories we console our losses in any kind of competition. Much had to know the Colombian idiosyncrasies, the finder so happy adjective to describe the ups and downs of everyday life. We played as lost as ever and has always come to be the motto of our players, our boxers, our next cyclists Lucho Herrera.)
(...)
Publicacióneltiempo.comSecciónEditorial - opiniónFecha de publicación29 de enero de 1995 AutorNULLVALUE
(January 29, 1995)
 
Google Groups: soc.culture.chile
De Barinas a Barranquilla
Luis Carcamo
9/4/96
Hola Amigos:
Efectivamente fui desde Barinas (Venezuela) a Barranquilla. Unas 22
horas en trasnporte colectivo, pasando por zonas fronterizas bien
“calientes” e inospitas. Pero valio la pena.
JUGAMOS COMO NUNCA PERO PERDIMOS COM SIEMPRE
FUE UN TRINFO MORAL (Bla bla bla)
Hello Friends:
I was actually from Barinas (Venezuela) to Barranquilla. A 22
hour complimentary group, through border areas well
“Hot” and inospitas. But it was worth it.
LOST BUT NEVER PLAY AS ALWAYS COM
Trinfo WAS A MORAL (Bla bla bla it)
 
Google Groups: es.rec.deportes.futbol
Che! Jugamos como nunca… y perdimos como siempre :-(
Klonik Melonik
10/21/97
 
Googel Groups: es.rec.deportes.futbol
Italia, sempre Italia  
Pianin
6/4/02
“Javi”

escribió en el mensaje
news:adgkde$10efbk$1@ID-147891.news.dfncis.de…
 
| Como que nada de rechistar.Italia son los mejores,en el sentido de
| seleccion,hacen de la seleccion un equipo le echan ganas,corazon y juegan
| con oficio.Pero por otra parte se han ganado a pulso que nadie los pueda
ver
| ni en pintura.La racaneria,el catenaccio,la potra que a veces tienen,es
que
| da rabia coño.Ver como España se parte los huevos (bueno no siempre) y
queda
| fuera,el clasico “jugamos como nunca perdimos como siempre” y llega Italia
y
| sin hacer mucho pasan a la siguiente ronda.Me podras decir 500 teorias
sobre
| resultadismos,pero el futbol que a mi me gusta ver es el que se juega
| bonito,no el que se echa para atras a defender un 1-0
 
| As none of rechistar.Italia are the best, in the sense
| Seleccion, make the selection a team will throw forward, heart and play
| With oficio.Pero otherwise have earned that nobody can
see
| Or pintura.La racanería the deadbolt, the filly who sometimes have is
that
| Coño.Ver hate to Spain as part of the eggs (well not always) and
is
| Out, the classic “play like we never lost as usual” and reaches Italy
and
| Without much spend the next 500 words you can ronda.Me theories
about
| Resultadismos, but the football that I like to see is being played
| Nice, not the one to check back to defend a 1-0
   
BBC Mundo
Martes, 23 de agosto de 2005 - 14:14 GMT
Excusas, no más que excusas
(...)
COMMENTS
Cada vez que pierde el equipo nacional, se menciona : Jugamos como nunca, perdimos como siempre!!!!!!!!!!
Amilcar Tellez, Cochabamba, Bolivia
Each time the national team loses, it is mentioned: We play as ever, we lost as always!!!!
Amilcar Tellez, Cochabamba, Bolivia
     
Wordreference.com
patata
10th December 2006, 11:00 PM
Hola,
como traduciríais,
jugamos como nunca y perdimos como siempre?????
 
Mi opción:
we played as never before, and lose as always.
 
Pero no se si está bien. Tampoco tengo claro si as o like.
   
Google Books
First Stop in the New World:
Mexico City, the Capital of the 21st Century
By David Lida
New York, NY: Riverhead Books
2008
Pg. 136:
For days afterward, chilangos would parrot an ironic catchphrase: “We played like never before, and lost like we always do.”
 
Financial Times
July 8, 2010 5:58 pm
Spain finally ready to pass biggest test
By Simon Kuper
Eternal losers are now the pass masters
Alfredo di Stéfano, the Spanish forward, once summed up Spain’s football history in a phrase: “We played like never before, and lost like always.”
   
Google Books
Soccer Men:
Profiles of the Rogues, Geniuses, and Neurotics Who Dominate the World’s Most Popular Sport
By Simon Kuper
New York, NY: Nation Books
2011
Pg. 96:
In the famous Spanish phrase, “We played like never before, and lost as usual.”
 
The Run of Play
Trials and Tribulations
BY Patrick Corcoran
June 25,2011
(...)
Another balm for the let-down Mexican fan is the tireless refrain, Jugamos como nunca, perdimos como siempre. (In English, “We played like never before, but we lost as we always do.”) You hear this in Mexico after virtually every tournament elimination. The implication is that the squad reached new heights of football greatness on the pitch, even if the scoreboard, damned stubborn thing that it is, doesn’t reflect it. Unfortunately, against the Argentinas of the world, it is a false claim; a more accurate (though less lyrical) mantra would be: Jugamos como siempre, perdimos como siempre.
 
Google Books
Soccernomics:
Why England Loses, Why Spain, Germany, and Brazil Win, and Why the U.S>, Japan, Australia—and Even Iraq—Are Destined to Become the Kings of the World’s Most Popular Sport
By Simon Kuper
New York, NY: Nation Books
2014
Pg. 386:
In these sorry times Di Stefano, the Argenitinian—turned Colombian–turned Spanish international, summed up Spain’s soccer history in a phrase: “We played like never before, and lost like always.”
 
Twitter
David Luhnow
‏@davidluhnow
There’s an old saying in #Mexican football. “Jugamos como nunca, perdimos como siempre.” We played like never before, and lost like always
12:58 PM - 29 Jun 2014
 
Metro (UK)
How brave Mexico ‘played like never before, but lost like always’
Monday 30 Jun 2014 9:16 am
(...)
As the saying in Mexico goes, ‘jugamos como nunca, perdimos como siempre.’ We played like never before, we lost like always. A terrible refrain, but none more fitting for this exit.