Based in Porto Alegre, deep in the country’s south, Sport Club Internacional are one of Brazilian footballs big boys, but not quite to the extent of the sides from the big cities of Rio and Sao Paulo. The Colorados have had a rich and successful history, with the 1940’s being the clubs first golden era. It was at this time that they earned the nickname “Rolo Compressor” (Steam Roller), a moniker shared with one or two other historical Brazilian club sides to describe a team that has “steam rolled” all opposition. This was an extremely offensive team that won 8 Rio Grande do Sul (Campeonato Gaucho) titles in 9 years. The reason for their superiority in this era dates back to their foundation in 1909, when their founders, two brothers of Italian descent, couldn’t find a team to play for. There were only two clubs in Porto Alegre at the time, and those were both private clubs for those of German ancestry. The name Internacional was chosen to signify that the club was open to anybody who wanted to play, regardless of race, nationality or social status. As such, in 1926 it was one of the first clubs to allow black players to join, which eventually led to the strengthening of the team, culminating with a period of great success in the 1940’s. Not only did the club have the regions best players with no retrictions or conditions on them joining, but they also gained another nickname: “The People’s Club”.

 

The era began with the arrival of a new club president, Hoche de Almeida Barros, who took it upon himself to get the club in order off the pitch which translated to success on it. In 1940, Inter thrashed city rivals Germio 6-1 in a classic. Obviously then, the side had a great attack, however they were still lacking somewhat in defence, evidenced by a 2-1 loss to Gremio in their next meeting. Over the next few years, defensive players were added and Inter dominated the state league, taking out every season in the 1940’s except for 1946 and 1949. The big clubs from Rio and Sao Paulo took notice, and hammered Inter with lucrative proposals to take all their best players. However, these players refused to leave, staying loyal to Internacional. In this way, they endeared themselves to the fans and the press alike, and it’s because of this, not just their success on the pitch, that this group of players are remembered today.

 

The team was packed with characters such as Assis, who struggled with being overweight and unfit and was one of the first players to be substituted in Brazilian football, Avila who was struck down with syphilis and hospitalised just as he was signed by Inter – doctors doubted he would ever play football again but he recovered to become one of the league’s top stars, Tesourinha, Brazilian international and incredible dribbler – fans used to come to Inter games just to watch him play, captain Russinho who was a rich university graduate and played for the love of the game rather than the money, since he didn’t need it and Carlitos, the league’s all time highest goal scorer with 485 goals in his career – he spent 15 uninterrupted years at Internacional. 

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Achievements:
Campeonato Gaucho – Champions x8

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Star player: Tesourinha, dob 3 December 1921, pob Porto Alegre, Brazil, nickname: Little Treasure

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As the star of this Internacional team, Tesourinha was famous for his remarkable dribbling skills, and it was said that fans went to Internacional games only to watch him play. Just before he turned 18, Tesourinha had the choice of two clubs who wanted his services – Internacional and Ferroviario. Whilst Inter was the more professional and better structured club, several of Tesourinha’s friends were on the books at Ferroviario. In the end, he made the smarter choice and signed with Internacional who were able to provide him with more opportunities as a professional footballer. Tesourinha made his mark on his debut against Cruzeiro, and became a valuable member of the team from then on. He stood out in the 1940 championship winning season, despite many other clubs signing other top quality players in an effort to beat Inter to the title. He became a champion the following year, scoring two goals in the state final. He repeated the feat the following two years, with one and three goals in those finals respectively. In the decisive game of the 1944 championship, Inter lost three players to injury. There were no substitutions at the time, so Inter were down to 8 players. Tesourinha scored the winner nonetheless and gave Inter the title in a 2-1 win. By now, he was famous across Brazil and heavy hitters Corinthians, Flamengo, Botafogo, Sao Paulo and Palmeiras all tried to lure him away, but he remained loyal to Inter. The peak of his career came in 1949 when he won the South American championship as a member of the Brazilian national team. He scored twice in the final against Paraguay. He finally moved on that year, signing with Vasco da Gama. In 1950, he was selected as a starter for the Brazilian World Cup squad, but a knee injury forced him to be unable to participate. He won a league title at Vasco, but with his knee injury haunting him, he returned to his home of Porto Alegre and tried to rejoin Internacional, however his injury was too much. Instead, he was approached by Gremio to become their first ever black player and break their racist tradition of excluding them. His signing was met with protests from the fans and press, but nethertheless, Tesourinha stayed at the club. He didn’t win any titles there, but bringing an end to Gremio’s prejudices was a victory in itself. Internacional fans were in for a surprise in 1957 when, in a friendly against Cruzeiro, Tesourinha came onto the pitch in an Inter kit, took the kick off, walked off the pitch, removed his boots and thus ended his career as a player. Just when they fans thought they had seen the last of him though, Tesourinha came on as a substitute in another friendly against Rio Grande, returning to the club he loved for one last hurrah. After the game, Internacional’s hymn was played in the stadium as Tesourinha and Carlitos symbolically took down the nets. His death coincided with Internacional’s 1970’s golden age. Tesourinha contracted stomach cancer and passed away in 1977. To this day, Internacional’s supporters swear that Tessourinha was a greater player than Garrincha was.