Clube Athletico Paulistano

⚽ France, Switzerland, and Portugal were the first European countries to host a Brazilian football team. It was Paulistano, in 1925. They played 10 games and won 9, with significant victories, long journeys, and many celebrations.

🚢 In February of that year, the white and red team boarded the ship Zeelandia with shirts, boots, and balls to cross the ocean. Then the biggest state champion and also the only national champion, Paulistano became a force beyond the South American continent.

👏 This feat was made possible by the dedication of Antonio Prado Junior, the club’s historic president, who took the young amateurs (all of whom had their respective professions) to face the cold, poor fields, champion teams (local and national), and players of the most varied styles and approaches.

😃 After 20 days of training on the ship and parties with the other passengers, Paulistano arrived in Paris, where everything was new. Right away, they faced a duel against the French national team, the host nation, in the intense cold and snow. On the scoreboard, an unforgettable rout: a Brazilian victory of 7-2.

👑 They became “Les Brésiliens Rois du Football” (“Brazilians, The Kings of Football”), by the French newspaper “Le Journal.” Telegrams arrived from all sides. Friends or rivals, everyone wished them success and thanked Paulistano for winning and elevating Brazilian football on other fields.

📋 All the results of the tour (with technical data):
🆚 15/3/1925 – French team 2×7 Paulistano (read more – in Portuguese)
🆚 22/3/1925 – Stade Français 1×3 Paulistano (read more – in Portuguese)
🆚 29/3/1925 – Cette 1×0 Paulistano (read more – in Portuguese)
🆚 2/4/1925 – Bastidienne 0x4 Paulistano (read more – in Portuguese)
🆚 5/4/1925 – Havre 1×2 Paulistano (read more – in Portuguese)
🆚 10/4/1925 – Strasbourg 1×2 Paulistano (read more – in Portuguese)
🆚 11/4/1925 – Bern 0x2 Paulistano (read more – in Portuguese)
🆚 13/4/1925 – Swiss team 0x1 Paulistano (read more – in Portuguese)
🆚 19/4/1925 – Rouen 2×3 Paulistano (read more – in Portuguese)
🆚 28/4/1925 – Portugal team 0x6 Paulistano (read more – in Portuguese)

📍 They played in the cities of Sète, Bordeaux, Le Havre, Strasbourg, Bern, Zurich, Rouen, and Lisbon. In all of them, they were applauded.

🎉 On their return to Brazil, aboard the ship Flandria, after almost three months away, the Paulistano group were celebrated in Recife, Salvador, and Rio de Janeiro, with a parade. They were carried on shoulders in Santos.

🚒 In São Paulo, all the group were received by more than 100,000 people, with a motorcade from Luz Station to the Club, packed with people who wanted to see the heroes of their victories abroad.

💯 One hundred years later, Paulistano celebrated its forerunners with remembrances and tributes. This feat is reflected and admired to this day at the Club, a producer of talented players and champion in various sports.

Read more:
• Football – A Pioneer and Greatest Team in Brazil in its Early Stages
• Paulistano – About the Club