Founded in 1930 from a merger between theClub Athletico Paulistano and theAssociação Atlética das Palmeiras, the club has used its traditional home kit of a white shirt with two horizontal stripes (one red and one black), white shorts, and white socks[4] since its inception; the color choice was made in honour of its parent-clubs primary colors, and also to represent the colors of the state ofSão Paulo. Although its main affiliation is with the state and city where it was founded, São Paulo is a national team and the third best-supported club in Brazil, with over 22 million supporters, covering around 9.9% of its population. Their supporters are calledsão-paulinos and are often nicknamedTorcida que conduz (Supporters who lead), due to their importance in maintaining São Paulo’s long lasting relevance in South America’s football. São Paulo ranked fifth in Brazil with a market value of R$ 2.214 billion in 2023.[5]
The foundations of the team in 1930 and 1935 at the memorial Cássio Luiz dos Santos Werneck.The championship team of 1931
The São Paulo Futebol Clube was founded on 25 January 1930 by 60 former officials, players, members, and friends of the football clubsClub Athletico Paulistano andAssociação Atlética das Palmeiras of São Paulo. Club Athletico Paulistano, founded in 1900 and one of the oldest clubs in town and 11-time champions of São Paulo, abandoned football due to the professionalization of the sport. Associação Atlética das Palmeiras, founded in 1902 and three-time champions of São Paulo, intended after the end of the season 1929 to set up a professional team, but failed to do so.[11]
The jerseys of the new club were derived from Associação Atlética das Palmeiras, which were white and sported a black ring across the chest. To the black-and-white of Associação Atlética das Palmeiras was added the red-and-white of Club Athletico Paulistano, and the ring became red, white, and black.[12]
Internal arguments and turmoil led to financial problems. The club merged with Clube de Regatas Tietê, another sports club from the town, and the football department was disbanded on 14 May 1935.[15]
Just after the merger with Tietê, the founders and re-founders created the Grêmio Tricolor, which formed Clube Atlético São Paulo on 4 June 1935, and, finally, São Paulo Futebol Clube on 16 December of the same year.[16]
The new club's first game was againstPortuguesa Santista on 25 January 1936. The match was almost cancelled, owing to the city's anniversary, but Porphyrio da Paz, the football director and composer of the club's anthem, obtained permission from the Board of Education Office for the game to continue.[17]
Another merger occurred in 1938, this time with Clube Atlético Estudantes Paulista, from the neighborhood ofMoóca, and the club finished as runners-up in the Campeonato Paulista.
In 1940, when theEstádio do Pacaembu was inaugurated, a new era began inSão Paulo state football. São Paulo Futebol Clube finished as runners-up once again in the Campeonato Paulista in 1941, and a year later the club paid 200contos de réis (equivalent to approximately R$162,000 today) to acquireLeônidas fromFlamengo. During this period, São Paulo also acquired theArgentinianAntónio Sastre andBraziliansNoronha,José Carlos Bauer,Zezé Procópio,Luizinho,Rui and Teixeirinha. With these new additions,Tricolor became known as theSteam Roller, winning the Paulista championship five times, in 1943, 1945, 1946, 1948 and 1949. The club sold itsCanindé training ground toPortuguesa to raise money for their new stadium, theEstádio do Morumbi, for which construction began in 1952.
The run of success of the 1940s, came to an end in the early 1950s, and the club only won two state championships in the new decade, in 1953 and 1957. The 1957 championship was won with the help of the 35-year-old Brazilian internationalZizinho, and Hungarian managerBéla Guttmann, both of them becoming idols. Guttmann took charge of the team in 1957 and won theSão Paulo State Championship that year.[18][19] While in Brazil he helped popularise the4–2–4 formation, which was subsequently used byBrazil as they won the1958 FIFA World Cup.
In the years that followed, the club struggled to compete with the rise ofPelé and his club, Santos. With the construction of the Morumbi stadium still ongoing, São Paulo entered its longest period without a title in its history, which was to last 13 years.
Since São Paulo's budget planning was focused on the Estádio do Morumbi construction rather than the signing of new players, few expensive players were bought during the 1960s, although the club did acquire Brazilian internationalsRoberto Dias andJurandir. In 1960, the Estádio do Morumbi was inaugurated, named after the late Cícero Pompeu de Toledo, the club's chairman during most of the stadium construction.[20] One of the few happy moments for the fans during this period was the 1963 Paulista Championship 4–1 victory against Pelé's Santos.
1970–1979: Campeonato Brasileiro (Brazilian Championship)
In 1970, the Estádio do Morumbi was finally completed and the club purchasedGérson fromBotafogo, Uruguayan midfielderPedro Rocha fromPeñarol and strikerToninho Guerreiro from Santos. The club was managed byZezé Moreira, who was the manager ofBrazil at theWorld Cup in1954, and won the Paulista Championship after beatingGuarani 2–1 in theCampinas a week before the end of the competition.
In the following years, São Paulo and Palmeiras gradually overtook Pelé's Santos andCorinthians as the dominant club sides in São Paulo state. In 1972, Palmeiras won the state championship title, only one point ahead of São Paulo, and the following year the clubs finished in the same positions in theBrazilian Championship. In 1974, São Paulo took part in theCopa Libertadores losing in the final toIndependiente in a replay.
In 1975, former goalkeeperJosé Poy took over as manager, and São Paulo won the Paulista Championship after defeatingPortuguesa in a penalty shoot-out.
Valdir Peres,Chicão,Serginho Chulapa andZé Sérgio were the club's most influential players when São Paulo finally secured the Brazilian Championship for the first time in1977 following a penalty shoot-out victory over Atlético Mineiro at theMineirão. However, they failed to win another trophy until the reclaimed the Paulista Championship in 1980.
In the 1980s, São Paulo won four Paulista and one Brazilian titles, helped by the impressive central defensive pair ofOscar andDario Pereyra. 1980 and 1981, the club won the Paulista Championship in successive seasons for the first time since the 1940s.[21]
In 1985, the head coachCilinho introduced to the world theMenudos of Morumbi, a team that includedPaulo Silas,Müller and Sidney, and the club once again won the Paulista Championship. The main striker wasCareca, a centre-forward who also played forBrazil in the1986 FIFA World Cup. The midfield featuredFalcão, brought in from Italian clubRoma and becoming a big part in winning the Campeonato Paulista in 1985.In1986, managerPepe led the club to its second Brazilian Championship title, defeatingGuarani in a penalty shoot-out. In 1987, Dario Pereyra left the club, but in that year theMenudos team won its last title, another Paulista title. The so-calledTricolor Decade ended with the 1989 Paulista Championship title and a second-place finish in the Brazilian Championship, when São Paulo lost toVasco da Gama in the final match.[21]
1990–1995: The Telê Era: Libertadores and Intercontinental Cups
Telê Santana, won two Copa Libertadores and two Club World Cups with São Paulo.
In 1990, after a poor start to the campaign in the Paulista,Telê Santana was hired as the club's coach, and São Paulo went on to finish runners-up in the Brazilian Championship.[22] In 1991, Santana won his first title after winning the Paulista championship.
In 1991, São Paulo won the Brazilian championship after beatingCarlos Alberto Parreira'sBragantino, and the club began a period of consistent achievement both nationally and internationally. The following year they reached theCopa Libertadores final, where they facedNewell's Old Boys of Argentina. São Paulo lost the first leg 1–0, but reversed the scoreline in the second leg in Brazil, and then won the competition in the penalty shoot-out to take the title for the first time.[23]
In the same year, inTokyo the club won its firstIntercontinental Cup, beatingJohan Cruyff'sBarcelona 2–1. After returning to Brazil, the club beat Palmeiras 2–1 to win its 18th state championship title.
In 1993, São Paulo retained the Copa Libertadores, beatingUniversidad Católica ofChile inthe finals 5–3 on aggregate, including a 5–1 first leg win. After the competition, influential midfielderRaí left the club. The Copa Libertadores win allowed the club to play theRecopa Sudamericana that year, beating1992 Supercopa Libertadores winners and fellow Brazilian side Cruzeiro. The club also won the1993 Supercopa Libertadores, beating Flamengo on penalties in the final. The Supercopa Libertadores title meant the club has completed an unprecedented CONMEBOL treble (Copa Libertadores, Recopa Sudamericana, Supercopa Libertadores).
São Paulo was able to defend itsIntercontinental Cup title again, beatingFabio Capello'sMilan 3–2. Müller scored the winning goal in the 86th minute of the match, from an assist byToninho Cerezo.[24] This meant the club had completed a quadruple.
In 1994, the club reached theCopa Libertadores finals for the third year in a row, and faced Argentina'sVélez Sársfield. On this occasion they lost on penalties to the Argentine side at the Morumbi stadium. But by the end of this year, São Paulo won theCopa CONMEBOL, defeating Peñarol of Uruguay inthe finals 6-4 on aggregate with a team known as "Expressinho", a team formed of youth and reserve players led byMuricy Ramalho.[25]
At the beginning of 1996, owing to health issues, Telê Santana left São Paulo, ending the club's golden era. Between 1995 and 2004, the club had fourteen managers. Among the most notable titles during those ten years were the 2000 Paulista Championship and the club's firstRio-São Paulo Tournament title in 2001.Rogério Ceni,Júlio Baptista,Luís Fabiano andKaká were the club's stars. Raí briefly returned to the club between 1998 and 2000, and with him, the club won the Paulista Championship twice, in 1998 and 2000, after beating Corinthians and Santos, respectively. In 2004 São Paulo were back in the Copa Libertadores and reached the semi-finals before being eliminated by underdogsOnce Caldas from Colombia. At the end of that year,Émerson Leão was hired as the club's coach.
In 2003, São Paulo made a deal with Spanish amateur side Santangelo Club Aficionado that resulted in the Spanish club changing its name toSão Paulo Madrid.[26]
2005–2009: Three Brazilian Championships, Libertadores and FIFA Club World Cup
In 2005, with Leão as the club's manager, São Paulo won the Paulista Championship. Leão, however, would soon leave the club withPaulo Autuori, former manager of thePeru national team, hired to replace him. São Paulo won the Libertadores Cup for the third time, beating another Brazilian side,Atlético Paranaense, in the final. Atlético switched the first leg of the final toEstádio Beira-Rio,Porto Alegre, their own ground not having sufficient capacity for a final, and the match ended in a 1–1 draw. In the second leg, at the Morumbi, São Paulo won 4–0 to become the first Brazilian club to win three Copa Libertadores titles.
Tribute received from the Paulista Football Federation and President Lula for winning the first FIFA Club World Cup.
After the success of the 2005 season, Paulo Autuori left the team to coachKashima Antlers in theJ. League.Muricy Ramalho was signed up as the new coach, having ledInternacional to the runners-up position in the 2005 Brazilian Championship. In his first tournament as a manager, Ramalho reached second place in the Paulista Championship, losing to Santos by one point. São Paulo reached the final of the2006 Copa Libertadores, but lost 4–3 on aggregate to Brazilian rivalsInternacional. However, they went on to win their fourthCampeonato Brasileiro trophy, becoming the first team to become national champions in the newleague system format.
After being eliminated from theCopa Libertadores round of 16 toGrêmio in 2007, São Paulo won the Brazilian title for the second year in a row, fifteen points ahead of second-placedSantos. They won the title for the third season running in 2008 season, overturning an 11-point deficit behind Grêmio in the second half, to win its sixth league title. Manager Muricy Ramalho was the first manager to win three league titles in a row with the same team.
Despite this feat, Muricy was sacked the following year after São Paulo was eliminated in the2009 Copa Libertadores quarter-finals to Cruzeiro, its fourth consecutive elimination to a Brazilian side.Ricardo Gomes took over as manager. The club was very close to winning the league for the fourth time in a row, however, after struggling in the final 4 games, they ended up finishing in third.
In 2010 São Paulo lost once again toInternacional in the2010 Copa Libertadores, this time in the semifinals, endingRicardo Gomes' spell as manager. The club finished ninth in the league, not qualifying for the international competition for the first time since 2003.
In 2011, the club signedRivaldo and brought backLuís Fabiano for a club-record €7.6 million fromSevilla.[citation needed] GoalkeeperRogério Ceni, meanwhile, scored his 100th career goal, against Corinthians in the Campeonato Paulista. Despite these events, it was another very disappointing season, finishing sixth in the league and failing to qualify for the Libertadores once again.
In research conducted by Brazilian sports website GloboEsporte.com, São Paulo, during the eight years between 2003 and 2011, were just the second Brazilian club to earn more money than losses in the transfer market –Tricolor paulista receivedR$287 million, behind only Internacional, which earned R$289 million.[30]
In 2012, São Paulo won theCopa Sudamericana (its only title in the 2010 decade) and qualified for next season's Libertadores, finishing fourth in the league underNey Franco. However, after that season, the club hit a second massive dry spell and struggled to regain its dominance in the Brazilian and South American stage.
For the 2013 season, after seven years wearing kits produced byReebok, São Paulo signed with Brazilian brandPenalty. The contract was valid until 2015 and the club earned R$35 million per year.[31] This contract was the second-most lucrative kit deal in Brazil, just exceeded by Flamengo andAdidas' deal of R$38 million.[32] In May 2015 São Paulo presented its new kits, made byUnder Armour. In 2018 the team became sponsored by Adidas.[33]
In2014,2018 and2020 the club was one of the contenders for the national league title, but did not win it; São Paulo finished runners-up in 2014, fifth in 2018, and fourth in 2020, the last two being marked by massives drops of form in the second half. In contrast to this, they struggled hard in2013 and2017, fighting (and eventually saving themselves) against relegation to thesecond tier.
In 2021, São Paulo finally ended its second biggest dry spell in its history (8 years); under new managerHernán Crespo, the club defeatedPalmeiras at theCampeonato Paulista finals, winning the competition for the first time since 2005. However, after a continuing sequence of poor results, which included quarter-final exits in theCopa Libertadores and in theCopa do Brasil to Palmeiras andFortaleza, respectively, Crespo was sacked in October, with the club being involved in another relegation battle at theCampeonato Brasileiro, eventually finishing 13th, after Crespo was replaced by club legendRogério Ceni in his second managerial spell.
In 2022, under Ceni, the club reached once again theCampeonato Paulista finals, reaching their third state finals in four years; a progress, since São Paulo didn't reach the state finals between 2007 (when the knock-out second phase was re-established) and 2018. São Paulo ended the competition as runners-up to Palmeiras; despite winning the first leg 3–1 at the Morumbi, they suffered a heavy 4–0 comeback defeat at Allianz Parque. Also in 2022, the club reached the semifinals of the2022 Copa do Brasil, being eliminated by eventual winnersFlamengo,[citation needed] and suffered another final defeat, this time in theCopa Sudamericana, losing to Ecuadorian sideIndependiente del Valle inCórdoba, Argentina;[34] It was the first time since 2005 the club reached two finals in the same year. In theCampeonato Brasileiro, however, São Paulo finished in 9th place, one position outside Copa Libertadores qualification.
In 2023, just like six years before, Rogério Ceni was sacked and replaced byDorival Júnior after getting eliminated in the quarter-final of theCampeonato Paulista to underdogs and eventual runners-upÁgua Santa. Under the guidance of Dorival, São Paulo won its firstCopa do Brasil title in a memorable run, defeating along the wayItuano,Sport Recife and, most notably, city rivals Palmeiras and Corinthians and defending champions Flamengo in the finals, winning the first leg 1–0 in theMaracanã and drawing 1–1 at the second leg in the Morumbi.[35] The club finished 11th in theCampeonato Brasileiro and reached the quarter-finals of theCopa Sudamericana, being eliminated by eventual championsL.D.U. Quito.
When theClub Athletico Paulistano and theAssociação Atlética das Palmeiras merged, their colours (red and white for CA Paulistano and black and white for AA das Palmeiras) were inherited by São Paulo. The colours match those ofSão Paulo's state flag,[39] and also represents the three main races that lived in Brazil during that period: theNative Brazilians (represented by the red), theWhite Brazilians (represented by the white) and theAfro-Brazilians (represented by the black).[40]
The club's home kit is a white shirt, with two horizontal stripes at chest level, the upper one red and the lower one black, and the badge in the centre of the chest; the shorts and socks are white. The away kit consists of a shirt with red, white and black vertical stripes, black shorts and black socks.
The badge, representing aheart with five points, consists of a shield with a black rectangle in the upper section bearing the initials SPFC in white; below the rectangle there's a red, white and black triangle. It was designed by thegerman graphic designer Walter Ostrich and one of the founders, Firmiano de Morais Pinto Filho.[41] The badge also has five stars, two gold and three red ones: the gold ones denoteAdhemar Ferreira da Silva's World and Olympic records at the1952 Summer Olympics inHelsinki and at the1955 Pan American Games inMexico City; the red ones represent each of the twoIntercontinental Cups and theFIFA Club World Cup won by the club.[42]
The traditional three stars in São Paulo’s crest, representing the three worldwide championships won by the club.
Although São Paulo's kit has been supplied by several different manufacturers, the club's traditional home and away kit suffered very few changes and variations throughout the years, making it one the most recognizable kits in Brazil.
São Paulo's iconic 72,039 seater stadium is officially namedEstádio Cícero Pompeu de Toledo (Cicero Pompeu de Toledo Stadium) and commonly known by the nicknameEstádio do Morumbi (Morumbi Stadium). It was designed by architectVilanova Artigas and it’s considered a monument inBrazilian modernism. Due to its significant cultural and architectural importance,São Paulo‘s administration chose to include the stadium in its cultural preservation list, effectively eliminating any chance of modification and modernization in the stadium.
MorumBIS has been on the list since 2018, but after the signature of a multi-million refurbishment deal withWTorre [pt], São Paulo’s prefecture agreed to withdraw the stadium’s name for the list, paving the way for a R$800 million modernization to be complete by 2030.
In late 2023,Mondelez bought theNaming rights to the stadium for a record R$25 million a year, on a 5-year contract, temporarily changing the stadium’s name to "MorumBIS". Also in 2023,Live Nation Entertainment signed a R$ 60 million 5-year deal with the club for concerts and events in the Stadium, the deal being the most expensive of its kind.
The first game played at the stadium was on 2 October 1960, when São Paulo win 1–0 in a friendly match againstSporting Club from Portugal. It was inaugurated in with a maximum sitting capacity of 120,000 people, but now its maximum capacity is 72,039 seats.[43]
The club also owns two training grounds, one namedCentro de Treinamento Frederico Antônio Germano Menzen (Frederico Antônio Germano Menzen Training Center), nicknamedCentro de Treinamento (CT) da Barra Funda (Barra Funda's Training Center), which is used mostly by the professional team.[44] The other is theCentro de Formação de Atletas Presidente Laudo Natel (President Laudo Natel Athletes Formation Center), nicknamedCentro de Treinamento (CT) de Cotia (Cotia's Training Center), which is used by the youth teams.[45]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
The game between these clubs is also known as "Majestoso", a name coined by Thomas Mazzoni. The first "Majestoso" occurred on 25 May 1930. The fixture has seen 110 wins for São Paulo, 131 wins for Corinthians and 114 draws.[53]
Also known as "San-São", this fixture was first played in 1936. Since then, São Paulo have won it 137 times, Santos 106, and there have been 75 draws.[55]
São Paulo FC is one of the most successful clubs in Brazil, having won a total of 32 domestic honours, in addition to their 12 international successes. It is the Brazilian club with the most international titles. By winning the2024 Supercopa do Brasil, São Paulo became the first Brazilian club to win all available trophies.[3]
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