Casa Pia A.C.

History

Casa Pia A.C. was officially founded on 3 July 1920, thanks to the efforts of Cândido de Oliveira, Ricardo Ornelas, Tomás Marquez, David Ferreira, and others. However, the club’s roots go back to 1893, when the Real Casa Pia de Lisboa football team first formed. That early side made history in 1898 by defeating the supposedly unbeatable Carcavelos Club, a victory that helped cement football’s place in Portugal. Just months after the official founding, on 3 October 1920, Casa Pia FC claimed its first trophy, the Bronze Herculano Santos, by beating Benfica 2–1. Cândido de Oliveira captained the team, and Cosme Damião served as referee. In that debut season, Casa Pia went undefeated, winning both the Lisbon Regional Championship and the Lisbon Cup. They also beat northern champion FC Porto in the Taça 27 de Julho, a match that served as a final warm-up for the first Portuguese Championship the following year. By the time the club was only 17 months old, it had already traveled to three foreign tournaments with star player Afonso Alvito: Paris, San Sebastián, and Seville. Casa Pia became the first Portuguese team to play in Paris, competing at Pershing Stadium in the Christmas 1920 Tournament alongside Cercle Athlétic de Paris, Cercle Athlétic de Vitry, FC Cantonal of Switzerland, and FC Espanya of Barcelona. In the opening match, Cercle de Paris won 2–1, with Cândido de Oliveira scoring for Casa Pia. The trip to Seville occurred on 16 October 1921, for the inauguration of the Campo de Sports on Avenida de la Reina Victoria. There, Casa Pia faced Sevilla FC, which wore its current emblem for the first time. Despite an injury to player Spencer, who left the pitch for much of the match, Sevilla won 3–0, with goals from León, Kinké, and Escobar.