Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Basic history

On July 1, 1894, the Club de Regatas Botafogo, a rowing club, was founded.The name was intended to evoke the neighbourhood where the club was based. The colours of the club were black and white, and its symbol the Lone Star, or the "Estrela Solitária", the first star to appear in the sky (in reality not a star, but the planet Venus). It soon became one of the strongest clubs in Rio de Janeiro, winning several competitions, along with rivals such as Flamengo, Vasco da Gama, Guanabara, Icaraí and São Cristóvão.
On August 12, 1904, another club was founded in the neighbourhood: the Electro Club, the name first given to the Botafogo Football Club. The idea came during an algebra lesson at Alfredo Gomes College, when Flávio Ramos wrote to his friend Emmanuel Sodré: "Itamar has a football club in Martins Ferreira Street. Let's establish another one, in Largo dos Leões, what do you think? We can speak to the Wernecks, to Arthur César, Vicente and Jacques". And so the Electro Club was founded. But this name wouldn't last. After a suggestion from Dona Chiquitota, Flávio's grandmother, the club finally became the Botafogo Football Club, on September 18 of the same year. The colours? Black and white., just like Juventus FC, the team of Itamar Tavares, one of the club's founders. And the badge, drawn by Basílio Vianna Jr., in Swiss style with the BFC monogram. The Botafogo Football Club would soon become one of the strongest football teams in Rio de Janeiro, winning the championships of 1907, 1910, 1912 and more.
The same name, the same location, the same colours and the most important thing: the same supporters. It seemed that the destiny of both clubs was to become one. And so it happened: on December 8, 1942 they finally merged. It was after a basketball match between both clubs, when Botafogo Football Club player Armando Albano died suddenly, that the idea began to become truth. At the tragic occasion, the president of Club de Regatas Botafogo, Augusto Frederico Schmidt (also a major Brazilian poet) spoke: "At this time, I declare to Albano that his last match ended with the victory of his team. We won't play no longer the time left on the clock. We all want the young fighter to leave this great night as a winner. This is how we salute him". Eduardo Góis Trindade, Botafogo Football Club's president said: "Between the matches of our clubs, only one can be the winner: Botafogo!". And then Schmidt declared the fusion: "What else do we need to our clubs become one?". And so they did: Botafogo de Futebol e Regatas finally became true. The Football Club's badge became black, and the monogram substituted by Clube de Regatas' lone star. This badge, according to the club's statute, can never be modified. The water sports maintained the Clube de Regatas' uniform, all black, while the terrestrial sports maintained Football Club's one, vertical-striped black and white jersey with black shorts.