Sport Club Corinthians Paulista

Sport Club Corinthians Paulista, commonly known as Corinthians, are a Brazilian football team from São Paulo in Brazil.

History

Foundation

The Corinthians was founded September 1, 1910, by a group of (chiefly Italian) labourers in the neighbourhood of Bom Retiro, under the lights of a oil lamp, in the Rua dos Imigrantes (Immigrants Street). Their idea was to found a football team in which anyone could display his abilities in the sport, since back then, in the beginning of the 20th century, football in Brazil was played mainly by British descendants and people who worked for British companies, like the São Paulo Railway. In other words, Corinthians, like club Flamengo in Rio de Janeiro, was one of the first "popular" football clubs in Brazil.

Related Topics:
September 1 - 1910 - Bom Retiro - 20th century - Brazil - Flamengo - Rio de Janeiro

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The origin of the name

Among the founders, the first ideas for the name of the club were full of Brazilian national spirit: Carlos Gomes Football Club and Futebol Clube Santos Dumont. However, these prominent Brazilian names were put aside after the English amateur team Corinthians, that wear pink and brown shirts, won all six games in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro during an exhibitional tour of Brazil. The name Sport Club Corinthians Paulista was agreed upon, as an homage to the great British club of the beginning of the past century. The name was suggested by Charles Miller to the first President of the club.

Related Topics:
Carlos Gomes - Santos Dumont - English - Corinthians - Charles Miller

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Becoming great

In the first few years after its foundation, Corinthians Paulista played first in local tournaments, and then in the São Paulo State Championships. Its first winning season was in 1914, as they became State Champions of that year. Other triumphs followed. As a popular team, the number of Corinthians supporters is huge. In Brazil, the club is in the 2nd position in number of supporters, behind Flamengo http://placar.abril.com.br/aberto/rankings/torcidas/index.shtml, http://lancenet.ig.com.br/news/frames/framepes.htm.

Related Topics:
1914 - Flamengo

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The Great Rival

In 1914, inspired by the visit of two Italian clubs, some Italian immigrants, members of Corinthians, decided to form a club (football and basketball) of their own, the Palestra Italia (now known as Sociedade Esportiva Palmeiras). They were instantly labeled as betrayers and the teams became rivals, not only because of the "betrayal", but also because Corinthians had many immigrant supporters in its beginning and the new club quickly divided the suport among them. The two teams remain the two bitterest and fiercest rivals in Sao Paulo to this day.

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The Centennial Champion

Corinthians are known in Brazil as the "Centennial Champion", because of the coincidence featured in the years of some of its conquests:

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1922 - State Champions; Brazil's independence from Portugal was in 1822

Related Topics:
1922 - Portugal - 1822

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1954 - State Champions; Foundation of the city of São Paulo was in 1554

Related Topics:
1954 - 1554

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