The club was founded in 1905 by a group of Italian immigrants in Argentina. It joined the Argentine Football Association League in 1913. Boca went through several jersey styles before settling on its distinctive blue shirt with a single yellow band across the chest in 1913.

After several names were proposed, "Boca" (for the neighborhood) was chosen, adding "Juniors" to it after a suggestion by Sana, to highlight to name. The use of English language in football team names was commonplace, as British railway workers had originally introduced football into Argentina.