Cruzeiro Esporte Clube facts for kids
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| Full name | Cruzeiro Esporte Clube | ||
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| Nickname(s) | Raposa (Foxes) Celeste (Celestials) Cabuloso (... Ones) La Bestia Negra |
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| Founded | 2 January 1921 | ||
| Stadium | Mineirão | ||
| Capacity | 62,160 | ||
| SAF Owner | Pedro Lourenço (90%) Cruzeiro Esporte Clube (10%) |
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| President | Lidson Potsch | ||
| Head coach | Fernando Diniz | ||
| League | Campeonato Brasileiro Série A Campeonato Mineiro |
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| 2022 2022 |
Série B, 1st of 20 (champions) Mineiro, 2nd of 12 |
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Cruzeiro Esporte Clube is a famous Brazilian professional football club. It is based in Belo Horizonte, a city in the state of Minas Gerais. While Cruzeiro plays in different sports, it is best known for its football team. The team competes in the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, which is the top football league in Brazil. They also play in the Campeonato Mineiro, the main league for clubs in Minas Gerais.
The club was started on January 2, 1921. It was founded by sports fans from the Italian community in Belo Horizonte. Back then, it was called Società Sportiva Palestra Itália. During Second World War, the Brazilian government stopped the use of any symbols linked to countries fighting against Brazil. So, in 1942, the club's leaders changed its name. They chose Cruzeiro Esporte Clube to honor a national symbol: the Southern Cross constellation.
Cruzeiro plays its home games at the Mineirão stadium. This stadium can hold up to 62,547 fans. The team's main uniform colors are blue shirts, white shorts, and white socks.
Cruzeiro is one of Brazil's most successful football clubs. They first won the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A in 1966. They beat the strong Santos team, which included the legendary Pelé. Cruzeiro won the Brasileirão again in 2003, 2013, and 2014. They also hold the record for winning the Copa do Brasil six times. The team has won the Campeonato Mineiro 38 times. Cruzeiro has also won many international titles. These include two Copa Libertadores trophies and two Supercopa Libertadores. In 2003, Cruzeiro achieved a special feat called the "Domestic Treble." This means they won three major titles in one year: the Campeonato Mineiro, the 2003 Copa do Brasil, and the 2003 Brasileirão.
Cruzeiro has a long-standing rivalry with Atlético Mineiro. This rivalry is known as the Clássico Mineiro. Many famous players from Cruzeiro have played for the Brazilian national team in the FIFA World Cup. Some of these stars include Ronaldo, Tostão, and Dida. Players from other countries, like Roberto Perfumo from Argentina, have also played for Cruzeiro and their national teams.
Contents
Club History: How Cruzeiro Started
The story of Cruzeiro began with the Italian community in Belo Horizonte. Many Italian immigrants lived there and wanted to create their own football club. This was similar to what Italians did in São Paulo, where they founded Palestra Itália. The people of Belo Horizonte wanted the Italian communities in Minas Gerais to have their own team too.
On January 2, 1921, a meeting took place where the Società Sportiva Palestra Italia was officially founded. Ninety-five people were there. They decided on the club's shield and uniform, which used the colors of the Italian flag. At first, only members of the Italian community could play for the team. Aurelio Noce was chosen as the first president.
Palestra Italia was known as the team for the Italian community. But it also had players from the working class in Belo Horizonte. This was different from other clubs like Atlético and América, whose players often came from wealthy families.
The idea for the club grew stronger when another local team, Yale, faced problems. Some players left Yale and helped create the all-Italian Società Esportiva Palestra Itália of Belo Horizonte. Until 1925, only Italian men were allowed to join the club.
Palestra played its first friendly game on April 3, 1921, winning 2–0. Their first official match was a 3–0 win against their future rivals, Clube Atlético Mineiro.
In January 1942, Brazil joined World War II. The government made a rule that no organizations could use names from enemy countries. So, the Italian name was removed, and the club changed its name to Sociedade Esportiva Palestra Mineiro.
About six months later, on October 7, the club's president called a meeting. They discussed new names. While "Ypiranga" was suggested, the name Cruzeiro Esporte Clube was chosen. This was to honor the Southern Cross constellation, a major symbol of Brazil. The idea came from Oswaldo Pinto Coelho. The club officially started playing as Cruzeiro in 1943. The new colors chosen were blue and white. These colors represented both the Brazilian flag and the Italian national football team.
Golden Eras: Success and Trophies
When the Mineirão stadium opened in 1965, Cruzeiro began one of its most successful times. The club won five Campeonato Mineiro titles in a row. Then, they won their first national title, the 1966 Taça Brasil. They beat Santos, Pelé's team, in the final. Cruzeiro won the first game 6–2 and the second game 3–2.
In 1976, Cruzeiro won its first Copa Libertadores de América, a major South American tournament. They beat River Plate from Argentina. They reached the final again in 1977 but lost to Boca Juniors. After winning the Copa Libertadores in 1976, Cruzeiro played in the Intercontinental Cup. They tied Bayern Munich 0–0 in Brazil but lost 2–0 in Germany.
The 1980s were a tougher time for Cruzeiro. They won a couple of Campeonato Mineiro titles but no other major championships. This was the only decade since 1960 that Cruzeiro did not play in the Copa Libertadores.
The 1990s brought a new era of success. For 15 years, the club won at least one title every year. This included six of their seven international championships and another Brazilian Championship in 2003. In 2010, the Brazilian football body (CBF) officially recognized Cruzeiro as the 1966 Brazilian champion.
In 2003, Cruzeiro had an amazing year. They won the Campeonato Mineiro, the Copa do Brasil, and the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A. This made them the only Brazilian team to win the "triple crown" (three major titles in one season). They earned 100 points and scored over 100 goals in 46 matches, making it one of the best campaigns ever in the Brazilian championship.
From 2003 to 2012, Cruzeiro mainly won the Campeonato Mineiro. However, they often finished in the top five of the Campeonato Brasileiro, which helped them qualify for the Copa Libertadores four years in a row. In 2009, they reached the Copa Libertadores final but lost to Estudiantes de La Plata.
After a difficult 2011 season, Cruzeiro improved. In 2013, they won the Campeonato Brasileiro for the third time. They played a very attacking and strong game, winning the title with four games left. The 2014 season was even better. Cruzeiro won the Campeonato Mineiro without losing a single match. They also led the Campeonato Brasileiro for most of the season, winning it for the fourth time. This made them the second team outside Rio de Janeiro or São Paulo to win the Campeonato Brasileiro twice in a row.
Club Symbols: Colors, Crest, and Mascot
Team Colors and Uniforms
When Cruzeiro was known as Palestra Italia, their home uniform was green. The first kit was a dark green shirt with white shorts and green socks. They wore this in their first game on April 3, 1921. In 1928, the shirt became a lighter green with a white neck and red cuffs. The socks had red and white details, like the Italian flag. This uniform was used until 1940. The light green color gave the team the nickname "periquito" (parakeet).
In 1940, the shirt changed to horizontal stripes with the club crest in the middle. This shirt helped them win the 1940 Campeonato da Cidade. The club also started being called "tricolor" instead of "periquito."
In 1942, for one game, Cruzeiro played as Ypiranga, wearing a blue shirt with a horizontal stripe. In 1943, they played their first game as Cruzeiro. The shirt was all blue with a large white V-neck design. The shorts and socks were white. For night games, they sometimes wore an all-white shirt with blue details. In 1959, the shirt became all blue again, a design that influenced later uniforms. Instead of the crest, they sometimes used just the five stars of the Southern Cross on the shirt.
In 1984, Cruzeiro's shirt had its first company logo, from the uniform maker Topper. In the same year, they got their first shirt sponsor, Medradao, but only on the away shirts.
Club Crest and What It Means
The first Palestra Itália crest was a diamond shape with red and green halves, showing Italian colors. It had the letters P and I in a white circle. Over the years, the crest changed shapes and letter designs.
Cruzeiro's first crest, introduced in 1950, was simple: a blue circle with five white stars arranged like the Southern Cross. This crest was used for over nine years. In 1959, the crest changed to include a white border with the words "-CRUZEIRO ESPORTE CLUBE-BELO HORIZONTE". This version was used for a long time, until 1996. In 2006, a crown was added to the crest to celebrate their "triple crown" win in 2003.
Sometimes, Cruzeiro has used just the five stars from the Southern Cross on their shirts instead of the full crest. This was done from 1959 until 2000, and again in 2002-2003. In 2003, a new shirt featured two Copa Libertadores trophies on top of the crest. In 2004, a crown was added on top of the trophies. Since 2007, the "loose stars" design has often been used on home shirts. These special designs were for the shirts, not official changes to the club's main crest.
Club Anthem
The club's official song, Hino ao Campeão, was written by Jadir Ambrósio in 1966. He wrote it to honor his favorite team. He didn't plan for it to be the official anthem, but fans loved it so much that they adopted it.
Team Mascot: The Fox
The club's mascot is a raposa, which means fox in Portuguese. Cartoonist Fernando Pieruccetti, known as "Mangabeira," created it in the 1940s. He was inspired by a former club president, Mario Grosso. Mangabeira said, "He was a director who was sly, agile, intelligent, and skillful like a fox."
In the 2000s, Cruzeiro made the Raposão (Big Fox) its main mascot. Raposão appears at all home games, cheering with the fans. In 2010, Raposão won a "Mascot Competition" on a Brazilian TV show, being named Brazil's Best Mascot. In the same year, Cruzeiro introduced a "junior mascot" called "Raposinho" (Little Fox), a smaller version of Raposão.
Club Leadership: Presidents
- Aurélio Noce – 1921–22
- Alberto Noce – 1923–24
- Américo Gasparini – 1925–26, 1928
- Antonio Falci – 1927, 1929–30
- Braz Pelegrino – 1927–28
- Lidio Lunardi – 1931–32
- José Viana de Souza – 1933
- Miguel Perrela – 1933–36
- Romeo de Paoli – 1936
- Osvaldo Pinto Coelho – 1936–40
- Ennes Cyro Poni – 1941–42
- João Fantoni – 1942
- Wilson Saliba – 1942
- Mario Torneli – 1942
- Mário Grosso – 1942–47
- Fernando Tamietti – 1947, 1950
- Antônio Cunha Lobo – 1947–49
- Antônio Alves Simões – 1949
- Manoel F. Campos – 1950
- Divino Ramos – 1951
- José Greco – 1952–53, 1955
- Wellington Armanelli – 1954
- José Francisco Lemos Filho – 1954
- Eduardo S. Bambirra – 1955–56
- Manoel A. de Carvalho – 1957–58
- Antonio Braz Lopes Pontes – 1959–60
- Felicio Brandi – 1961–82
- Carmine Furletti – 1983–84
- Benito Masci – 1985–90
- Salvador Masci – 1990
- César Masci – 1991–94
- Zezé Perrella – 1995–2002
- Alvimar de Oliveira Costa – 2003–08
- Zezé Perrella – 2009–11
- Gilvan Tavares – 2012–17
- Wagner Pires de Sá – 2018–19
- José Dalai Rocha – 2019–20
- Sérgio Santos Rodrigues – 2020–23
- Lidson Potsch – 2024–
Current Team and Staff
Main Squad Players
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Other Players Under Contract
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Under-20s and Academy Players
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Players on Loan to Other Teams
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First-Team Coaching Staff
| Position | Name | Nationality |
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| Head coach | Fernando Diniz |  BRA |
| Assistant coach | Wesley Carvalho | BRA |
| Goalkeeping coach | João Paulo Lacerda | BRA |
| Robertinho | BRA |
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| Fitness coaches | Leonardo Almeida | BRA |
| Nathália Arnosti | BRA |
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| Túlio Flôres | BRA |
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| Performance analyst | Gabriel Eloi | BRA |
| Henrique Américo | BRA |
Famous Players from Cruzeiro
Club Records and Achievements
Players with Most Games Played
The player who has played the most games for Cruzeiro is Fábio. He has an amazing record of 800 appearances, playing for the team since 2005. He beat the previous record holder, Zé Carlos, who played 619 games. In third place is "The Prince" Dirceu Lopes. The non-Brazilian player with the most appearances is Roberto Perfumo from Argentina, with 138 games. However, Ariel Cabral recently broke this record with 200 appearances.
Top Goal Scorers
Tostão, a famous Brazilian player and 1970 FIFA World Cup winner, has scored the most goals for Cruzeiro. He scored 249 goals between 1963 and 1972. He is 25 goals ahead of Dirceu Lopes. Niginho is third with 207 goals. These three are the only players with over 200 goals for the club.
Ninão holds the record for most goals in a single match: 10 goals in Cruzeiro's 14–0 win over Alves Nogueira in 1928. Nelinho scored the most goals from penalties (38) and from free kicks (42). Walter Montillo is the non-Brazilian player with the most goals for Cruzeiro, scoring 39 times.
Cruzeiro's Trophies and Honors
| Continental (South America) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Competitions | Titles | Seasons |
| Copa Libertadores | 2 | 1976, 1997 |
| Recopa Sudamericana | 1 | 1998 |
| Supercopa Libertadores | 2s | 1991, 1992 |
| Copa Master de Supercopa | 1s | 1995 |
| Copa Ouro | 1s | 1995 |
| National (Brazil) | ||
| Competitions | Titles | Seasons |
| Campeonato Brasileiro Série A | 4 | 1966, 2003, 2013, 2014 |
| Copa do Brasil | 6 | 1993, 1996, 2000, 2003, 2017, 2018 |
| Campeonato Brasileiro Série B | 1 | 2022 |
| Inter-State (Between States) | ||
| Competitions | Titles | Seasons |
| Copa Sul-Minas | 2 | 2001, 2002 |
| Copa Centro-Oeste | 1 | 1999 |
| State (Minas Gerais) | ||
| Competitions | Titles | Seasons |
| Campeonato Mineiro | 38 | 1928, 1929, 1930, 1940, 1943, 1944, 1945, 1956, 1959,1960, 1961, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1977, 1984, 1987, 1990, 1992, 1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2014, 2018, 2019 |
| Taça Minas Gerais | 5s | 1973, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985 |
| Supercampeonato Mineiro | 1 | 2002 |
- record
- s shared record
Other Wins
- Copa dos Campeões Mineiros (2): 1991, 1999
- Torneio Início do Campeonato Mineiro (8): 1929, 1938, 1940, 1941, 1943, 1944, 1948 e 1966
City Competitions
- Copa Belo Horizonte (1): 1960
Friendly Tournaments
- Triangular de Caracas (2): 1970, 1977
- Trofeo Cidade de Vigo (1): 1978
- Trofeo Ciudad de Valladolid (1): 1982
- Trofeo Ciudad de Santander (1): 1982
- Trofeo Reyno de Navarra (1): 1986
- Trofeo Ciudad de Alicante (1): 1986
- Torneio Internacional de Guadalaraja (1): 2001
- Campeonato Internacional de Verano (1): 2009
Special Achievements: Trebles and Doubles
Trebles (winning three major titles in one season)
- Domestic Triple Crown (State, Cup, and League): 2003
Doubles (winning two major titles in one season)
- Domestic Double (State and League): 1966, 2014
- Domestic Double (State and Cup): 1996, 2018
- Continental Double (State and Supercopa Sudamericana): 1992
- Continental Double (State and Copa Libertadores): 1997
Other Notable Campaigns
- Intercontinental Cup
- Runners-up (2): 1976, 1997
- Copa Libertadores de América
- Runners-up (2): 1977, 2009
- Campeonato Brasileiro Série A
- Runners-up (5): 1969, 1974, 1975, 1998, 2010
- Copa do Brasil
- Runners-up (2): 1998, 2014
- Supercopa Sudamericana
- Runners-up (2): 1988 and 1996
- Campeonato Mineiro
- Runners-up (31): 1922, 1923, 1924, 1925,1927, 1932, 1933, 1936, 1938, 1950, 1954, 1955, 1962, 1970, 1971, 1976, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1985, 1986, 1988, 1989, 2000, 2005, 2007, 2013, 2017, 2022, 2024
Stadiums and Training Facilities
Cruzeiro's first stadium was the Estádio do Prado Mineiro. The club played its first game there on April 3, 1921. In 1923, Cruzeiro built its own stadium, Estádio do Barro Preto. This stadium was later known as Estádio Juscelino Kubitscheck (or Estádio JK). It became the largest stadium in the state, holding 15,000 people. Cruzeiro used this stadium until 1965. In 1983, the stadium was taken down. One of the club's social clubs was built there instead.
Since 1965, Cruzeiro has played its home games at Estádio Governador Magalhães Pinto, usually called Mineirão. It is in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais. Cruzeiro shares the stadium with its rival, Atlético Mineiro. The stadium belongs to the state of Minas Gerais. It is managed by a private company called Minas Arena since 2013. The Mineirão was built in 1963 and could originally hold about 130,000 fans. Now, it seats 64,800.
The time after the Mineirão opened is often called the Era Mineirão (Mineirão Era). During this period, Cruzeiro became famous nationally and internationally. Cruzeiro holds the attendance record at the stadium. In 1997, 132,834 fans watched Cruzeiro beat Villa Nova in the Campeonato Mineiro final.
Cruzeiro has also thought about building a new stadium. However, the state asked them to stay at the Mineirão. After a new president took over in 2009, plans for a new stadium mostly stopped.
The Mineirão was chosen to host games for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. It underwent renovations that finished in 2012. While the Mineirão was closed, Cruzeiro played home games at other stadiums like Arena do Jacaré and Ipatingão.
The club also owns other facilities. These include two training centers: Toca da Raposa I for youth teams and Toca da Raposa II for the main senior team. They also have an office building and two social clubs. Cruzeiro is known for having one of the best training systems in Brazil.
Club Management and Money
Cruzeiro used to be a nonprofit organization. This meant that the club was owned by its "partners" or members who paid a yearly fee. These members received benefits like access to club properties and tickets. They also had the right to vote for club officials. This system lasted from the club's start in 1921 until late 2021.
In 2019, the club faced financial problems and was moved down to a lower league for the first time. In December 2021, the famous former football player Ronaldo, who started his career at Cruzeiro, announced he would become the owner of Cruzeiro's football department.
See also
- List of Cruzeiro Esporte Clube managers
- List of Cruzeiro Esporte Clube players
- List of world champion football clubs and vice-world champions in football
- Cruzeiro Women's Team
