Sport Club Corinthians Paulista () is a Brazilian professional sports club based in São Paulo, in the district of Tatuapé. Although it competes in multiple sports modalities, it is best known for its professional men's football team, which plays in the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, the top tier of Brazilian football, as well as in the Campeonato Paulista Série A1, the first division of the traditional in-state competition.
Founded in 1910 by five railway workers inspired by the London-based Corinthian Football Club, the Sport Club Corinthians Paulista traditionally plays in a white and black home kit. Their crest was first introduced in 1939 by modernist painter and former player Francisco Rebolo, featuring the São Paulo state flag in a shield, two oars, and an anchor, representing the club's early success in nautical sports. Corinthians has played their home matches at the Neo Química Arena since 2014, which served as one of the venues for the 2014 FIFA World Cup and also hosted the opening match. The club has longstanding rivalries with Palmeiras (known as Derby Paulista or simply The Derby), São Paulo (the Clássico Majestoso), and Santos (Clássico Alvinegro).
One of the most widely supported teams in the world and the second most in Brazil, with over 30 million fans (just behind Flamengo) Corinthians is one of the most successful Brazilian clubs, having won seven national titles, four Copa do Brasil trophies, two Supercopa do Brasil titles, and a record 31 São Paulo State championships. In international competitions, the club won the inaugural FIFA Club World Championship in 2000 (the only time, as of 2025, that the Cup was won by the club qualified as the host nation representative), repeated the feat in 2012 after being crowned Copa Libertadores de América champions for the first time that same year and also won a Recopa Sudamericana title. In 2017, the club was listed by Forbes as the most valuable football club in the Americas, valued at $576.9 million.
History
In 1910, several professional football clubs were formed among the higher echelons of São Paulo society. Among them were Club Athletico Paulistano, São Paulo Athletic Club,not to be confused with São Paulo Futebol Clube & Associação Atlética das Palmeiras.do not confuse with Sociedade Esportiva Palmeiras The lower classes, excluded from these clubs due to socioeconomic division, founded their own clubs and only played "floodplain" football.
Bucking the trend, a group of five workers of the São Paulo Railway, them being, Joaquim Ambrose and Anthony Pereira (wall painters), Rafael Perrone (shoemaker), Anselmo Correia (driver) and Carlos Silva (general laborer), residents of the neighborhood of Bom Retiro. It was 31 August 1910 when these workers were watching a match featuring a London-based club touring Brazil, Corinthian F.C. After the match, while the group returned home, the men talked about partnerships, business ideas, and general dreams of grandeur. They each surfaced one idea: the foundation of a club, after several exchanges in a lively argument, a common ground led those athletes the same dream. The arguments led to the conclusion that they would meet the next day to make their dream into reality.
On 1 September 1910, the group agreed to meet after sundown in public sight. That night at 20:30 BRT (23:30 GMT), on Rua José Paulino ("Rua dos Imigrantes"; Immigrants Street), the five workers reunited alongside their guest and neighbors from Bom Retiro. That night the club was founded, alongside its board of directors, who elected Miguel Battaglia as the first Club President.
Corinthians played their first match on 10 September 1910, away against União da Lapa, a respected amateur club in São Paulo, and they were defeated by 1–0.
On 14 September, Luis Fabi scored Corinthians' first goal against Estrela Polar, another amateur club in the city, and Corinthians won their first game (2–0).
With good results and an increasing number of supporters, Corinthians joined the Liga Paulista, after winning two qualifying games, and played in the São Paulo State Championship for the first time, in 1913. Just one year after joining the league, Corinthians was crowned champion for the first time (in 1914), and were again two years later. There were many fly-by-night teams popping up in São Paulo at the time, and during the first practice held by Corinthians a banner was placed by the side of the field stating "This One Will Last".
1922, the Centennial of Brazilian Independence, marks the start of Corinthians hegemony in the São Paulo State Championship. As football was almost exclusively played at Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo by that time, the two state champions were considered to be the two top clubs in Brazil. After defeating the Rio de Janeiro State Championship champion of that year, América, Corinthians joined the company of the great teams in Brazil.
The same year also marked the first of three State Championships in a row, something that happened again in 1928–30, 1937–39 and 2017-19.
Corinthians seemed destined to win State Championships in threes; after six years without being champion, they won three more from 1937 to 1939, with prolific scorer Teleco leading the line.
The 1940s were a more difficult time; and the club would win a championship in 1941 and would only win their next in 1951.
At the beginning of the 1950s Corinthians made history in the São Paulo Championship. In 1951, the team composed of Carbone, Cláudio, Luisinho, Baltasar and Mário scored 103 goals in thirty matches of the São Paulo Championship, registering an average of 3.43 per game. Carbone was the top goal-scorer of the competition with 30 goals. The club would also win the São Paulo Championships of 1952 and 1954. In this same decade, Corinthians were champions three times of the Rio-São Paulo Championship (1950, 1953 and 1954), the tournament that was becoming most important in the country with the increased participation of the greatest clubs from the two most important footballing states in the country.
In 1953, in a championship in Venezuela, Corinthians won the Small Cup of the World, a championship that many consider as a precursor of the Worldwide Championship of Clubs. On the occasion, Corinthians, substituting for Vasco da Gama, went to Caracas, the Venezuelan capital and recorded six consecutive victories against Roma (1–0 and 3–1), Barcelona (3–2 and 1–0) and Selection of Caracas (2–1 and 2–0). The club would also win the Cup of the Centenary of São Paulo, in the same year (1954).
After the triumphs in the São Paulo Championship and the Rio-São Paulo of 1954, Corinthians had a lengthy title drought. During this time a key player was Rivellino who was part of Brazil's World Cup winning team of 1970.
The breakthrough finally came when they won the São Paulo state championship in 1977, breaking a string of 23 years without a major title.
In that era, Vicente Matheus was his famous Corinthians presidente.
Under the leadership of Sócrates, Wladimir and Casagrande, Corinthians were the first Brazilian club in which players decided about concentração, a common Brazilian practice where the football players were locked up in a hotel days before a game, and discussed politics. (In the early 1980s, military dictatorship, after two decades, ended in Brazil). In 1982, before the election of government of São Paulo State, the team wore a kit with the words: "DIA 15 VOTE" (Vote on 15th),BORBA, Marco Aurélio (5 November 1982) "O Timão cheio de bossas". Revista Placar. pp. 50-53 trying to motivate the biggest number of fans to vote.
In 1990, Corinthians won their first Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, beating their rivals, São Paulo in the final at the opponents' own stadium, Estádio do Morumbi.Campeonato Brasileiro Série A 1990 at RSSSF In the following year, Corinthians beat Flamengo and won the Supercopa do Brasil.Supercopa do Brasil at RSSSF In 1995, the club won the Copa do Brasil for the first time, beating Grêmio in the final at the Estádio Olímpico Monumental in Porto Alegre.Copa do Brasil 1995 at RSSSF In the same decade, the club won the state championship in 1995, 1997 and 1999,Campeonato Paulista at RSSSF and won the national championship again in 1998 and in 1999.Campeonato Brasileiro Série A at RSSSF In 2000, the club won the first FIFA Club World Cup, eliminating Real Madrid in the semifinals and beating Vasco da Gama on penalties in the final.
In 2002 the club won the Rio-São Paulo Tournament, and the Copa do Brasil in 2002, beating Brasiliense in the final.Copa do Brasil 2002 at RSSSF
The club's situation in early 2004 was among the most difficult in their history. Bad administration, lack of money and terrible campaigns both in the 2003 Brazilian Championship and in the 2004 São Paulo State Championship caused their millions of supporters to worry. Fortunately, some young players and a new manager Tite helped the team to improve from their terrible start. At the end of the championship, Corinthians finished in 5th place and gained entry to the Copa Sudamericana (a minor continental championship, similar to Europa League).
This situation was one of the factors which enabled Corinthians' president, Alberto Dualib, to convince the club's advisors to sign a controversial deal with an international fund of investors called Media Sports Investment. The deal granted the company a large degree of control over the club for 10 years in exchange for large financial investments in return. This has brought many quality players to the team, such as Carlos Tevez, Roger, Javier Mascherano and Carlos Alberto.
Despite the MSI investments, Corinthians experienced a slow start in the 2005 state championship, but managed to improve as it progressed, eventually managing to finish second. Their start to the Brazilian championship during 2005 was difficult, too, but after Daniel Passarella's dismissal (due to an unexpected 5–1 loss to Corinthians' rivals, São Paulo), the club finished the championship round well, and were eventually crowned Brazilian Champions for the fourth time, after a controversial annulment of eleven games due to a betting scandal. Tevez went on to win the Brazilian League Best Player award.
The relationship between Corinthians' managers and the MSI president, Kia Joorabchian was not good, and after being eliminated in the Copa Libertadores, the club experienced a crisis which was responsible for the bad performances for the rest of 2006. Eventually, the partnership came to an end.
On 2 December 2007, following a 1–1 draw away to Grêmio, Corinthians were relegated to the second division for the first time in the club history.
Corinthians, who won promotion to the top division of Brazilian football for 2009 by winning the Serie B tournament in 2008, with the best campaign in the history of the tournament, signed with three-time FIFA Player of the Year, Ronaldo.Brazilian Ronaldo set to join Corinthians – The Telegraph, 9 December 2008Ronaldo agrees to join Corinthians – The Independent, 9 December 2008 In 2009, led by Ronaldo, Corinthians won their 26th Campeonato Paulista and their third Brazilian Cup. Confirming the club's good moment, and the 100 years of the club, Corinthians announced the construction of their new stadium, Arena Corinthians, they finished the Campeonato Brasileiro 2010 in 3rd place, granting their place on the subsequent Copa Libertadores. After being eliminated from the South American tournament by the country rivals, Flamengo, though, Corinthians saw Ronaldo retire from football. To replace him, the club signed the with Inter Milan legend, Adriano. In 2011, Corinthians once again were eliminated in the Copa Libertadores, but this time in the playoff round by Deportes Tolima. After that, the team went on to win their fifth national title.