Sociedade Esportiva Palmeiras
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Sociedade Esportiva Palmeiras is a Brazilian football team from São Paulo, Brazil, founded on August 26, 1914 as Palestra Itália, but changed to the current name on September 14, 1942.
They play in green shirts, white shorts and green socks and are one of the most popular and traditional Brazilian clubs.
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History
Foundation and Name
Palmeiras was founded by the Italian-speaking community of São Paulo and was initially named Palestra Italia. Its original colors were red, white and green (those of Italy). The name change occurred during World War II. Brazil entered the war supporting the allies and its dictatorship forced Palestra Italia to change its name because of the reference to Italy. The original badge (a white ornamental "P" in a shield) is still present in the current one and the club has used red as a third colour (mostly in friendship games during the club's 75th anniversary).
Several other clubs whose names alluded to enemy foreign countries either disappeared (like Germania) or were renamed during the same period. Another Brazilian club that was once also called Palestra Italia is Cruzeiro Esporte Clube, from Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais.
Ups and Downs
The club has had a rather irregular history alternating between periods of intense success and failure. In the 1960s and early 1970s, for instance, the club collected honours, played several times the Libertadores Cup and won the Campeonato Brasileiro twice (1972/73). Then it faced more than fifteen years without winning anything important until, in 1991, the club signed with the Italian group Parmalat a sponsorship deal that lasted for eight years and made it the richest Brazilian club. During the Parmalat era Palmeiras won the Brazilian Championship twice (1992/93), the Brazilian Cup (1998) and the Libertadores Cup (1999) which, along with the 1972/73 championships are the club's most important honours.
Parmalat sponsorship ended in 2000 and left the club in dire straits. After a mildly irregular season in 2001 the club faced its worst year ever in 2002 and was relegated to the Second Division, which it won the next year, coming back to First Division in 2004. Since its comeback, however, the club has not done particularly well.
Stadium
Palmeiras plays at the Palestra Itália stadium (also nicknamed Parque Antártica due to the enormous advertising banners with the Antártica Beer logo on them). The venue has seats for 32,500 but usually seats only 30,000 for security reasons. The most important matches, however, are played either in the city-owned Pacaembu stadium or in São Paulo's Morumbi stadium so that more tickets can be sold. The stadium is particularly inadequate for night-time matches due to the low-power lighting system, which has earned it the nickname "boate" (night club).
Honours
International Competitions
- Libertadores Cup: 1999
- Mercosur Cup: 1998
- World Club Championship 1951 - Copa Rio
- Ramon de Carranza (Spain): 1969, 1974, 1975.
Brazilian Competitions
- Campeonato Brasileiro First Division: 1972, 1973, 1993, 1994
- Brazilian Cup: 1998
- Campeonato Brasileiro Second Division: 2003
- Brazilian Champions' Cup: 2000
- Rio-São Paulo Tournament: 1933, 1951, 1965, 1993, 2000
- Campeonato Paulista: 1920, 1926, 1927, 1932, 1933, 1934, 1936, 1940, 1942, 1944, 1947, 1950, 1959, 1963, 1966, 1972, 1974, 1976, 1993, 1994, 1996.
Palmeiras_Flag.png
Famous players
- Ademir da Guia
- Alex
- Dudu
- Leivinha
- Mazzola
- Chinesinho
- Jair Rosa Pinto
- Julinho Botelho
- Vavá
- Luis Pereira
- Djalma Santos
- Vagner Love
- Rivaldo
- Edu Marangon
- Edmundo
- César Sampaio
- Roberto Carlos
- Marcos
- Leão
- Valdir Joaquim de Moraes
- Oberdan Cattani
- Magrao
- Evair
- Edílson
- Félix
- Juninho Paulista
Famous Coaches
External links
- Palmeiras Official Site (http://www.palmeiras.com.br) (in Portuguese)
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