Milestones

By: dylan | September 5th, 2008

Last weekend was full of milestone events for Corinthians. Here’s a quick round-up before we hit the next round…

birthday cake Parabéns! — Sport Club Corinthians Paulista turned 98 years old on Monday. Brazil’s first and greatest “people’s team” was founded on September 1, 1910, by a group of workers waiting to take the trolley home in the Bom Retiro neighborhood of São Paulo.

Corinthians had a very happy birthday this year — two days before, we beat Gama 4-0 at home. This also marked our 1,500th game in Pacaembu Stadium, and our 100th goal of the year.

Update: Festa do povo! Don’t miss the video of Corinthians’ historic 1977 state title, which Bruno posted as part of his brilliant Canal 100 series.

Democracia Corintiana Democracia — In the early ’80s, Corinthians was the most democratic team in the world. The team’s entire staff could vote on every major decision, and the players openly opposed Brazil’s military dictatorship, even wearing slogans on their shirts during games. This legacy makes the last four years especially shameful, as Corinthians accepted a truckload of cash from the Russian mafia and suddenly became the Enron of South American football.

So I’m thrilled to hear that Corinthians members passed a statute on Saturday that fights against corruption and cronyism. Some of the new rules are:

* The team’s president will now be elected directly by the sócios (members).
* The president cannot run for reelection after serving more than a half term.
* The Deliberative Council will have 100 lifetime members instead of 200.
* Lifetime councilors will be elected by the Council, not appointed by the president.
* You cannot serve on the Council or the team management if you have professional or financial ties to the club.

…among many other measures. For those who read Portuguese, Débora Miranda kindly laid out the old and new rules in a table, and you can read the whole statute here (PDF).

Cristiane no Timão Cristiane — And finally, Corinthians made a stunning move by signing Cristiane to our women’s team. Along with Marta and Formiga, Cristiane is one of the stars who have brought unheard-of fame to women’s football in Brazil. Like Marta, she is a lifelong Corinthians fan, and now she’s shown girls that they too can dream of playing for their favorite team.

Her contract only lasts through November, when the São Paulo women’s state league ends, and the club had to get a third party to pay her wages. But as a show of support for women’s football, it’s a big step forward — hopefully the first of many.

Cristiane scored in her debut, a 3-1 win over São José, and then she brought her Olympic silver medal to Pacaembu to watch the men’s team. I can’t really follow the SP women’s state league too closely here in the USA, but it looks like it’s us and Santos fighting for the title. I’ll keep you posted.

Tomorrow — We take our Champale football on the road and see if Douglas, Elias, Morais, & Co. can run circles around Fortaleza in the Castelão. I’m not too scared of Fortaleza, but they did win their last home game 5-1, so I’m sure Mano will keep the boys on their toes.

Dentinho and Fabinho are out injured and Herrera’s suspended, so the lineup will probably be: Felipe; Alessandro, Chicão, William, André Santos; Carlos Alberto, Elias, Douglas, Lulinha; Bebeto, Morais. Should be good — catch you back here tomorrow.