Torcida Jovem

Young Supporters of Santos FC

Torcida Jovem (English: Young Supporters) is a torcida organizada, or supporters' group, for Santos FC, a Brazilian professional football club based in Santos, Brazil. Founded in 1969 by a group of fans from São Paulo, the group set out to make it a goal to attend every match that the club played in the capital of São Paulo. The current president is André Vinícius "Deko". Grêmio Recreativo Cultural Social Escola de Samba Torcida Jovem, popularly known simply as Torcida Jovem, is a samba school from São Paulo, Brazil.

Quick Facts

Team: Santos FC
Location: Aricanduva
Established: 26 September 1969
Membership: 80,000+
Leader: André Vinícius "Deko"

Lore & Background

During the late 1960s when Santos FC fan base did not extend beyond the limits of the city of Santos, a group of men made a point to attend every game the team played in São Paulo. After a few matches, the group began to arrange together trips to any state venue to popularize the idea to support the club, and negate the provocations of other rival fans. The habit of attending the club's matches en masse became so common that in 1969 they decided to give birth to a uniformed, official supporters group that attended every game the team disputes.

Thirteen individuals were the driving force behind the creation of Torcida Jovem, with Cosmo Damião, German, Toboggan, Menezes, Celso Jatene, Mestre Pedrão, China, Chacrinha, Magrão, Zuca, Almir and Zé Miguel being the principal de facto leaders. On September 26, 1969, when the club returned from another successful tour, unbeaten in a series of seven matches in Europe, the group gathered in an old house in the traditional neighborhood of Brás in São Paulo.

It was decided to name the group Torcida Jovem since the founders were no older than 21 years of age. Cosmo's house became the first official seat of the first organized supporters group for Santos FC. The firm's first witness of the club's success came on November 19 of that same year in Rio de Janeiro. In a match against Vasco da Gama, Pelé scored his 1,000th goal in the Maracanã.

The following year, the Torcida Jovem made themselves present during Brazil's victorious campaign during the 1970 FIFA World Cup.