Ceará Sporting Club facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Ceará

Full name	Ceará Sporting Club
Nickname(s)	Vozão (Big Grandpa) Vovô (Grandpa) Alvinegro Cearense (Black and White of Ceará) O Mais Querido (The Dearest) Campeão da Popularidade (Champion of Popularity)
Founded	June 2, 1914; 111 years ago (1914-06-02)
Stadium	Castelão
Ground Capacity	63,903
President	João Paulo Silva
Head coach	Léo Condé
League	Campeonato Brasileiro Série B Campeonato Cearense
2022 2022	Série A, 17th of 20 (relegated) Cearense, 6th of 10
Home colors Away colors Third colors

Team photo from the 1915 season

Ceará Sporting Club, often called Ceará, is a professional football team from Fortaleza, the capital city of Ceará state in Brazil. The club was started on June 2, 1914.

Ceará is one of the oldest and most successful football clubs in the Northeast region of Brazil. They are known for their strong rivalry with Fortaleza, another team from their city. Ceará is the most popular team in their home state. They have won more games against their main rival, Fortaleza, than they have lost.

History of Ceará Sporting Club

The club began on June 2, 1914, as Rio Branco Football Club. It was founded by Luiz Esteves Junior and Pedro Freire. The team's first colors were white and lilac. In 1915, on its first birthday, the club changed its name to Ceará Sporting Club. They won their first championship title in 1922.

In 1941, Ceará won the Campeonato Cearense, which is the state championship. This was the same year a new stadium, Estadio Presidente Vargas, opened. From 1961 to 1963, Ceará won the state championship three times in a row! In 1969, they won the Northeast Cup. In 1964, Ceará had its best season in Brazil's top league, finishing third.

In 1970, the club won the state championship again after seven years. In 1971, Ceará played in the very first Brazilian League but finished last. From 1975 to 1978, they were state champions four times in a row.

In 1985, Ceará finished seventh in the national league, which was their second-best result. In 1994, they reached the final of the Copa do Brasil (Brazilian Cup) but lost to Grêmio. In 1995, Ceará played in the Copa CONMEBOL, an international tournament. This made them the first club from Ceará state to play in an international competition.

From 1996 to 1999, the club won the state championship four years in a row. During this time, their home uniform changed to all black. This led to the nickname "Urubu do Nordeste" (Northeast Vulture).

In 2005, Ceará made it to the semifinals of the Copa do Brasil. They were defeated by Fluminense.

In 2010, Ceará returned to the Brazilian League after 17 years. They had a great start, staying unbeaten for eight matches. They even beat the champions, Fluminense. However, their performance dropped later, and they finished 12th. This earned them a spot in the Copa Sudamericana.

In the 2011 Copa Sudamericana, Ceará was knocked out by Sao Paulo in the first round. Later that year, they reached the Copa do Brasil semifinals again. They famously beat Flamengo, a very strong team, in the quarter-finals. However, Ceará lost to Coritiba in the semifinals. Also in 2011, they won the state championship, starting a run of four consecutive state titles until 2014. Sadly, the club was relegated from the Serie A that year.

In February 2014, Ceará opened its new training center, Cidade Vozao – Luis Campos. This is where the youth teams live and train, and where the main team practices.

In 2015, Ceará won their first Copa do Nordeste. They beat Bahia in the final. However, they struggled in the second division (Série B) that year. In 2018, they were promoted back to the top league. In 2020, the club won their second Copa do Nordeste. They finished eleventh in the top league (Serie A) and qualified for the Copa Sudamericana again.

In 2021, Ceará finished eleventh in the league once more. This qualified them for the 2022 Copa Sudamericana. They had an amazing run in this tournament, winning all their group stage matches. They even beat strong teams like Independiente de Avellaneda. They reached the quarter-finals but lost to São Paulo in a penalty shootout. However, playing in so many competitions made the team tired. They struggled in the league and were relegated after finishing seventeenth.

Club Achievements

National Titles

• Copa do Brasil
  • Runners-up: 1994

Regional Titles

• Copa do Nordeste
  • Winners (3): 2015, 2020, 2023
• Torneio Norte-Nordeste
  • Winners (1): 1969

State Titles

• Campeonato Cearense
  • Winners (46): 1915, 1916, 1917, 1918, 1919, 1922, 1925, 1931, 1932, 1939, 1941, 1942, 1948, 1951, 1957, 1958, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1971, 1972, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1980, 1981, 1984, 1986, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2002, 2006, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2017, 2018, 2024

Friendly Tournament Wins

• Taça Asa Branca
  • Winners (1): 2016
• Copa dos Campeões Cearenses
  • Winners (1): 2014

Women's Football Achievements

• Campeonato Brasileiro de Futebol Feminino Série A2
  • Winners (1): 2022
• Campeonato Cearense de Futebol Feminino
  • Winners (4): 2018, 2019, 2021, 2023

Home Stadiums

Ceará supporters at the Estádio Governador Plácido Aderaldo Castelo (Castelão)

Ceará's main training ground is Estádio Carlos de Alencar Pinto, which holds 3,000 people. For bigger matches and finals, the team plays at Estadio Castelão. This stadium can hold 60,326 fans. They also use Presidente Vargas Stadium, which has a capacity of 22,228.

Club Rivals

Ceará's biggest rival is Fortaleza. The games between these two teams are called Clássico-Rei, meaning "King Derby." They have played 603 times. Ceará has won 213 matches, Fortaleza has won 187, and there have been 203 draws.

Ceará's second biggest rival is Ferroviário. This team is the third largest club in Fortaleza. Their matches are known as Clássico da Paz, or "Peace Derby." This derby has been played 302 times. Ceará has won 140 games, Ferroviário has won 71, and 91 games ended in a draw.

Team Mascot

The team's mascot is an old man called "Vovô" (which means "Grandpa"). A cartoonist named Mino, from Ceará, created him.

The "grandpa" idea started around 1919. Meton de Alencar Pinto, a former president of Ceará SC, was coaching young players. He would call them his "grandsons" and tell them to "go easy on grandpa." This nickname then started to be used for the Ceará team itself. It also fit because Ceará Sporting Club was the first football team ever founded in the state.

Ceará Supporters

Ceará has the most supporters in its home state. It is also the third most supported club in the Northeast region of Brazil. Studies show that Ceará has about 1.6 million fans.

Logo Changes Over Time

Ceará's logo evolution

The first logo was used from 1915 to 1954. It was the club's first logo as Ceará Sporting Club.

The second logo was used from 1955 to 1969. It was inspired by the logo of Santos, another famous Brazilian club.

The third logo was used from 1970 to 2003. It removed the football from the previous logo and added a white outline.

The fourth logo is the one the team uses now. It was adopted in 2003. This logo is a new version of the previous one. It added white stars and the club's founding date.

Managers

Ceará has had many different managers throughout its history. Some managers have led the team more than once. They guide the players and decide the team's strategy for games.

Ultras Groups

Ultras groups are organized groups of passionate fans. Ceará has two main ultras groups:

• Cearamor
• Movimento Organizado Força Independente (Mofi)

See also

In Spanish: Ceará Sporting Club para niños