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Clube de Regatas do Flamengo (Brazilian Portuguese: [ˈklubi dʒi ʁeˈɡataʒ du flaˈmẽɡu]; English: Flamengo Rowing Club), commonly referred to as Flamengo, is a Brazilian sports club based in Rio de Janeiro, in the neighbourhood of Gávea, best known for their professional football team.

The club was first established in 1895 as a rowing club and played their first official match in 1912. Flamengo's traditional uniform features red and black striped shirts with white shorts, and red and black striped socks. Flamengo has typically played their home matches in the Maracanã, the national stadium of Brazil, since its completion in 1950, with some exceptions in recent years. Since 1969, the vulture (Portuguese: urubu) has been the most recognized mascot of Flamengo.^[2]

Flamengo established themselves as one of Brazil's most successful sports clubs in the 20th century during of the era of state leagues in Brazil when they captured several Campeonato Carioca (Rio de Janeiro state league) titles prior to the establishment of the first Brazilian national football championship in 1971. Since then, they have remained successful in Brazilian football, having won 7 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, 3 Copa do Brasil, and a record 36 Campeonato Carioca. They are one of three clubs to have never been relegated from the Brasileirão. In South American and worldwide competitions, the club's highest achievements are their conquests of the 1981 and 2019 Copa Libertadores, and 1981 Intercontinental Cup against Liverpool, led by the club's most iconic player Zico. Flamengo's fiercest and longest-standing rivalries are with the other "Big Four" of Rio de Janeiro: Fluminense, Botafogo and Vasco da Gama.

Flamengo is the most popular club in Brazil, with over 40.2 million supporters as of 2020.^[3] 2017, it is also Brazil's richest football club with an annual revenue of R$648.0 million (€163.04 million)^[4] and a valuation of over R$1.69 million (€425.21 million).^[5]

History[edit]

Establishment of the club (1895–1912)[edit]

Flamengo was founded on November 17, 1895, by a group of rowers gathered at club member Nestor de Barros's manor on Flamengo Beach in Rio de Janeiro. In the late 19th century, rowing was the elite sport in the region and the group hoped to impress the young women of the city's high society by establishing a rowing club. Previously, they could only afford a used boat named Pherusa, which had to be completely rebuilt before it could be used in competition. The team debuted on October 6, 1895, when they sailed off the Caju Point toward Flamengo Beach. However, strong winds turned over the boat and the rowers nearly drowned. They were rescued by a fishing boat named Leal (Loyal). Later as the Pherusa was undergoing repairs, it was stolen and never found again. The group saved money to buy a new boat, the Etoile, renamed Scyra.

The recently formed football (soccer) team before a match vs. Paissandu, 1912.

On the night of November 17, the group gathered at Nestor de Barros's manor on Flamengo beach and founded the Grupo de Regatas do Flamengo (English: Flamengo Rowing Group) and elected its first board and president (Domingos Marques de Azevedo). The name was changed a few weeks later to its current title of Clube de Regatas do Flamengo (Flamengo Rowing Club). The founders decided that the anniversary of the club's foundation should be commemorated on November 15 to coincide with Republic Proclamation Day, a national holiday.

Flamengo's football team was only established after a group of ten dissatisfied players from Fluminense broke away from that club following a dispute with its board.^[6] The players decided to join Flamengo because Alberto Borgerth, the team's captain, was also a rower for Flamengo. Also, establishing a land sports department at Flamengo was preferable to joining football rivals Botafogo or the all-English club Paissandu. The new members were admitted on November 8, 1911. A motion against the club taking part in football tournaments was defeated, and as a result the members officially established the team on December 24, 1911.

Football in the amateur era (1912–1933)[edit]

The new team trained on Russel Beach [pt] and gradually gained the support of the locals, who closely watched their practice matches. The first official match was played on May 3, 1912, and marked, to this day, the largest margin of victory in the club's history, as they defeated Mangueira 16–2. Flamengo's first ever match against Fluminense, the start of the Fla-Flu rivalry, was played on July 7 of that year and was won by Fluminense by a score of 3–2. That same year, Flamengo finished as runners-up of the Campeonato Carioca, the Rio de Janeiro State Championship. The team's first uniform was nicknamed the "papagaio vintém", due to its similarity to a particular type of kite. In 1914 the club won the Campeonato Carioca for the first time, dressed in a red, black, and white-striped shirt nicknamed the "cobra coral" (coral snake) was worn until 1916. Flamengo won the Campeonato Carioca again in 1915, 1920, and 1921.

In 1925, the team won the Campeonato Carioca and five other tournaments, a record at the time. In 1927 the prominent Rio newspaper Jornal do Brasil, in partnership with a mineral water company, held a mail-in contest to find "the most beloved club in Brazil." Though Flamengo enjoyed their largest increase in fan support after the club professionalized in the 1930s, they still defeated popular rivals Vasco da Gama in the vote.^[7] This was the first of many times that Flamengo would be polled as the nation's most popular club, originating the nickname "O mais querido do Brasil" ("the most beloved of Brazil").^[8] In 1933 the team went on its first tour outside Brazil (to Montevideo and Buenos Aires^[9]) and on 14 May of the same year played its final match as an amateur team, defeating River Futebol Clube by a score of 16–2.^[10] After this, the club's football department became professional.

Early professional era (1934–1955)[edit]

Local advertiser José Bastos Padilha was elected club president in 1934 and served until 1937. Under his tenure, the club massively improved its popularity in both Rio de Janeiro and the entirety of Brazil. For publicity, he organized a contest for students in schools to create phrases describing Flamengo, from which the phrase uma vez Flamengo, Flamengo até morrer ("Once you are Flamengo, you are Flamengo 'til you die") was developed and would later be adopted as part of the club's anthem. In 1936 Padilha signed excellent players such as Domingos da Guia and Leônidas da Silva (who would go on to be the leading goalscorer in the 1938 FIFA World Cup as a Flamengo player). These beloved players endeared Flamengo to the public and it is believed that by this time Flamengo was the most popular club in the country.^[7] In 1937 Flamengo hired Hungarian coach Izidor "Dori" Kürschner, who introduced the WM system to Brazil and other innovations from Europe such as training without the use of the ball and playing a more defensive, controlled style. Padilha facilitated the construction of Flamengo's new stadium and current training center, the Estádio da Gávea. The stadium was inaugurated on September 4, 1938, when Vasco da Gama defeated Flamengo 2–0 and Kürschner was promptly fired.

In 1938, the five-year split in Rio de Janeiro football over the dispute between professionalism and amateurism was resolved with the merger of the two competing leagues (Flamengo had been a member of the professional LCF - Liga Carioca de Football). In 1939, after twelve years without winning any titles, Flamengo conquered the state championship with a team that would become the basis of the three-time state champions in the 1940s.

In 1941, the group played its first international competition, the Hexagonal Tournament of Argentina.^[11] In 1942, the first organized supporters group in all of Brazil, Charanga Rubro-Negra, was founded in support of Flamengo.^[12] Flamengo's popularity grew incidentally during World War II when Brazil's allies the United States installed two high-powered antennas in Natal and Belém in the north of Brazil to intercept enemy radio signals.^[8] They also allowed residents in the North and Northeast regions to receive the radio broadcasts of football matches. As Rio de Janeiro was the national capital at the time and Flamengo was highly successful in the war years with Zizinho and Domingos da Guia, nationwide support increased. In 1944, Flamengo completed their first tricampeonato Carioca: three consecutive Rio de Janeiro state titles (winning the 1942, 1943, and 1944 competitions).^[13] The key player of this squad was Zizinho, a player developed at Flamengo and considered the first ever "idol" of the club. Zizinho was transferred to Bangu just before the start of the 1950 World Cup in Brazil, where he scored twice and the Seleção finished runners-up. From 1953 to 1955, Flamengo once again won the Rio de Janeiro State League three consecutive times.^[13]

Developing talent (1956–1973)[edit]

Despite the lack of achievements of this period Flamengo continued to grow in influence regionally, particularly due to their popular roster of players such as Dida, Carlinhos, Caju, Gérson, Antônio Rondinelli, Horácio Doval, Fio Maravilha, Evaristo de Macedo, Francisco Reyes and others. Throughout the 1950s, Flamengo played in several international invitational tournaments against South American and European competition.^[14][15][16]

The top football clubs in Brazil were largely concentrated in the Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo areas. As early as 1911 there have been several inter-state cup matches between clubs from the two municipalities. In 1955 Flamengo won their first Rio-São Paulo State Champions' Cup against Santos and in 1961 they captured the more prestigious Torneio Rio – São Paulo, which at the time assembled the best teams in Brazil and was the predecessor tournament for the eventual Brazilian Championship in 1971 (the Taça Brasil, established in 1959, served as the current format for determining a national champion and participant in the newly formed CONMEBOL Copa Libertadores). Flamengo won the 1963 Campeonato Carioca and qualified for the following Taça Brasil for the first time, finishing runners-up behind Pelé's Santos.

In late 1968, the legendary Garrincha was signed by Flamengo on a season-long contract, but he only made 20 appearances with four goals.^[17] The legacy of the club in the 1970s would be the fantastic class of young players to graduate from Flamengo's youth ranks to later form the backbone of Flamengo's "golden generation." In this period, players like Zico, Júnior, Leandro and others were promoted to the senior team.

Zico and the world champions (1974–1983)[edit]

Flamengo won their 18th Campeonato Carioca state championship in 1978. The following five years would come to represent the club's most glorious era. Brazilian stars like Júnior, Carpegiani, Adílio, Cláudio Adão and Tita were led by Zico to become state champions three times in a row - the club's third tri-championship. This run of sustained excellent play pushed Flamengo towards its first Brazilian Championship in 1980. As national champions, the club qualified to play in the South American continental tournament, the 1981 Copa Libertadores, for the first time.

The 1981 season is a benchmark year in Flamengo's history.^[18] They advanced through the semi-final group stage of the Copa Libertadores with four victories in four matches.^[19] In the final they encountered Chilean club Cobreloa, also a debutante club in the tournament. In the first final at the Maracanã, Flamengo prevailed (2–1) with two goals from Zico. In the National Stadium in Santiago the following week, the Brazilian team received a violent reception on the field and fell 1–0 from a free kick.^[20][21] Equal on goals, a third match was played at the neutral venue of the Estadio Centenario in Montevideo.^[21] Zico scored twice in the first half, sealing the game and the championship. Flamengo were crowned champions of South America on November 23 and qualified for the Intercontinental Cup, a single match to be played in Tokyo's Olympic Stadium against European Champions' Cup winner Liverpool FC.

On December 13, 1981, Zico, Tita, and Nunes took the field for the most important match in the club's history. Two goals by Nunes and one by Adílio (all in the first half) along with a brilliant midfield performance by Zico earned Flamengo the title of first Brazilian World Champions since Pelé's Santos, shutting out Liverpool 3–0.^[22]

The following two years were also marked with success. One more Rio de Janeiro State Championship in 1981 and two Brazilian Championships – 1982 and 1983 – closed Flamengo's "Golden Age."^[23]

National success and the return of Zico (1984–1994)[edit]

After two years playing in Italy for Udinese, Zico returned to the Flamengo in 1986 and won his last state championship. Only one month after returning, he suffered a severe knee injury after a violent tackle from Bangu defender Marcio Nunes, which interrupted his career for several months and affected his form in the 1986 FIFA World Cup.

Zico played for Flamengo from 1971 to 1983 and 1985–89, setting several records for the club.

In 1987, Zico was a major contributor to Flamengo's victory in the first edition of the Copa União. That year, the CBF was experiencing serious financial and institutional crises and was unable to secure sponsorship to organize the national championship as in years prior. As a result, the thirteen biggest clubs in Brazil (which included Flamengo) reacted and created a new entity named the Club of 13 to organize a championship of their own. The CBF originally supported the decision by the Club of 13, but were pressured by other clubs to create a larger national tournament. As a result, CBF placed three additional clubs into the Copa União, regarded the Copa União as the "Green Module," and organized a second "Yellow Module" of 16 other teams. CBF then decided that for the 1987 Brazilian Championship, the winners and runners-up of both modules would face each other in a knockout-style cup to determine the national champion and qualification for the Copa Libertadores, although the this decision was made after the beginning of the championship, without Club of 13 agreement. With strong performances from Zico, Zé Carlos, Renato Gaúcho and Bebeto, Flamengo conquered the Copa União with major victories over Internacional and Atlético Mineiro. However, there was a dispute over whether Flamengo and Internacional of the Green Module would dispute the quadrangular against Sport Recife and Guarani of the Yellow Module. The Club of 13 clubs had agreed to not participate in the final set up by the CBF, since it was decided while the matches were already being played, but Eurico Miranda, a representative of Vasco, Flamengo's archi-rival and member of the Club of 13, had already signed an agreement with CBF regarding the final, without the board consent. Flamengo still did not participate in the final under the understanding that it would only determine the entrants of the Copa Libertadores and not the Brazilian national champion.^[24] CBF officially recognized Sport as the sole champion in 1987 and they qualified to the Copa Libertadores. In 2011, CBF retroactively declared Flamengo champion of 1987.^[25] However, Sport later appealed the decision to a Common Justice Tribunal, which is prohibited by FIFA, and CBF ultimately declared Sport as the sole champion of that year.^[26]

Throughout his career at Flamengo, Zico scored 508 goals and was the top scorer in club history before retiring in 1990.^[27]

Even without its biggest star, the early years of the post-Zico era were successful for Flamengo. They achieved national victory in the second edition of the Copa do Brasil in 1990, defeating Goiás in the finals. In 1992, Flamengo won their fifth Campeonato Brasileiro, defeating Botafogo across two legs in the final (3–0, 2–2). The team's key player was again Júnior at 38 years old.

Risk of relegation (1995–2005)[edit]

After the Brazilian League title in 1992, the club entered a major financial crisis and domestic and international achievements became less frequent. In 1995, the year of Flamengo's centenary, radio sports broadcaster Kléber Leite became chairman of the club and signed striker Romário, the current FIFA World Player of the Year, from Barcelona.^[28] He joined Sávio and later Edmundo to become, as the supporters called, "the attack of dreams".^[29] Even with Romário and other stars, Flamengo's centennial year did not yield major trophies. Flamengo only won the Taça Guanabara, the first phase of the Rio de Janeiro State League.^[30][31] Flamengo also finished runners-up of 1995 Supercopa Libertadores. However, in 1996, Flamengo went undefeated in the Campeonato Carioca, conquering both the Taça Guanabara and Taça Rio phases. Romário was the top scorer of the tournament. Sávio was the top scorer and best player in Flamengo's victorious 1996 Copa de Oro campaign. The Copa de Oro was Flamengo's first international success since 1981, their third overall international title.^[32]

In 1999, Edmundo dos Santos Silva was elected club president, and brought with him a massive contract with sports marketing company ISL.^[33] Despite poor campaigns in the Campeonato Brasileiro, Flamengo won the 1999 Copa Mercosur, the second-tier cup of South America, and continued to be successful at the regional level, winning the triple in state championships (1999-2000-2001) for the fourth time as well the 2001 Copa dos Campeões inter-state title. In 2001 league play, Flamengo avoided relegation to the Brazilian Série B by winning against Palmeiras the final match of the tournament.^[34] The club suffered a series of bad campaigns in the national league in the following years.

ISL went bankrupt in 2002 for reasons unrelated to their contract with Flamengo, and the club was left without its wealthy partner. In the same year, Edmundo Santos Silva was removed from his role as president in a controversial manner amidst accusation of impropriety.^[35] Lacking the funds to make key signings, Flamengo failed to field competitive teams and narrowly avoided relegation in the 2002, 2004, and 2005 campaigns. 2005 was one of the worst seasons in Flamengo's history. The club only escaped relegation after the arrival of coach Joel Santana, who directed the team to six wins and three draws in nine matches played under his command. Twice in this low period, in 2003 and 2004, the team reached the finals of the Copa do Brasil, ultimately falling to Cruzeiro and Santo André. This Flamengo has also evaded massive taxes in the Banestado scandal [pt].^[36][37]

End of the drought (2006–2018)[edit]

Adriano celebrating a goal for Flamengo. In 2009 he finished as joint top-scorer in Série A with 19 goals.

In 2006, Flamengo reached the final of the Copa do Brazil for a fifth time, yet managed to conquer the title against rivals Vasco da Gama. From 2007 to 2009 Flamengo completed their fifth and most recent tricampeonato in the Carioca state league, and became sole owners of the record for most Carioca titles with 31 (Fluminense had 30 at the time).

On March 9, 2007, Flamengo received a commemorative date on the Rio de Janeiro (state) official calendar. Governor Sérgio Cabral Filho declared November 17 (the day the club was founded) "Flamengo Day".

In the 2007Brazilian Série A, Flamengo won many games at home, escaped the relegation zone and climbed to 2nd place before being defeated by Náutico 1–0 in the final round and ultimately ending the season 3rd. This marked a dramatic improvement in league outcome from previous seasons. Flamengo finished 5th the following year, and in 2009 after finishing the first half of the Brazilian Série A in 10th place, Flamengo won the title. With this victory Flamengo became five-time Brazilian League champions 17 years after their last title in 1992.^[38] The 2009 championship team finished the season with 67 points, the lowest winning point total in Brazil since the current league format was established in 2003. Flamengo were champions despite spending only two rounds at the top of the league: the final two. The title was won after a dramatic 2–1 come-from-behind victory against Grêmio in the final round.

Ronaldinho celebrates scoring for Flamengo in February 2011.

International success continued to elude Flamengo through the 21st century. After finishing runners-up in the 2001 Copa Mercosur to San Lorenzo on penalties, the club survived as far the quarter-finals only one time in their following twelve competitions (both Copa Libertadores and Copa Sudamericana). In 2008 in Flamengo's first official tournament tie against a club from Mexico, they defeated Club América 4–2 in the Estadio Azteca before losing polemically 3–0 at home and being eliminated in the Copa Libertadores round of 16.

Flamengo experienced a poor run in Série A from 2010 to 2015, finishing better than 10th only once. Following the success of 2009, the club gambled on winning several titles and signed striker Vágner Love to form a pair with Adriano. The dream of repeating as state champions four times in a row was foiled by Botafogo in 2010. After narrowly qualifying out of the group stage in the Copa Libertadores, manager Andrade was still fired. In their first quarter-final appearance since 1993, Flamengo were eliminated by Universidad de Chile. Shortly after, Vágner Love and Adriano left the team. A series of coaching changes during the troublesome domestic league saw Flamengo survive relegation and claim the final berth to the Copa Sudamericana under manager Vanderlei Luxemburgo.

The blockbuster signing of 2011 was 30-year-old superstar Ronaldinho from A.C. Milan. He was joined by Argentine Darío Bottinelli and Fluminense idol Thiago Neves. Flamengo won the Campeonato Carioca outright in an undefeated campaign, but captured no other trophies that season: eliminations in the Copa do Brasil by Ceará and the Sudamericana by Universidad de Chile, and a fourth-place finish in the league left fans feeling that a strong roster had been squandered. The season saw the retirement of Serbian club idol Dejan Petković as well. In 2012 Ronaldinho sued Flamengo claiming lack of payment for four months and canceled his contract with the club,^[39] Thiago Neves returned to Fluminense after a drawn-out negotiation with contract-holders Al-Hilal, and defender Alex Silva was loaned to Cruzeiro after threatening Flamengo with a lawsuit. Vágner Love and Ibson returned for a 2012 campaign that yielded no trophies and a group-stage exit from the Libertadores.

At the end of 2012, Flamengo elected Eduardo Bandeira de Mello as club president for three years. The goal of his term was to improve the club's finances, after an independent audit assessed Flamengo's debt at R$750 million.^[40] After a typical series of managerial changes, Jayme de Almeida was appointed as interim manager during which he fought off relegation and won the 2013 Copa do Brasil final against Atlético Paranaense. It was Flamengo's third Copa title, after 1990 and 2006.

Flamengo's Copa do Brasil title-defense fell short to Atlético Mineiro in the semi-final. However, by 2014, Flamengo was the only club that successfully reduced their debt over the year (down to R$600 million) and recorded the highest annual profit.^[41]