Golaço Stories

Brazil's soccer culture is very rich and full of folklore, and one of the ways in which this is expressed is in the name of the stadiums. It is very common for stadiums to have poetic names or to be given nicknames that are more charismatic than the official name. Here are a few of the best examples: Name: Brinco de Ouro da PrincessTranslation: The Princess's Golden EaringClub: Guarani Capacity: 29,000Name Meaning: The stadium is located in the city of Campinas which is known and "The Princess of the West". In reference to the city's nickname and the stadiums shape a...

Few countries allow the existence of "B Teams" within their professional soccer pyramid, even fewer allow them to participate in the cup, and of those few even fewer are able to progress significantly. In 1993 Hertha Berlin's B team, known at the time as Hertha Berlin Amateure, shocked Germany. As the name suggests, B Teams are really only meant to develop and test young players in a competitive scenario. However in Germany these reserve teams are allowed to participate in the national cup which opens up the possibility of a Cinderella story.  The journey began in the round of 64...

Italian soccer has an ongoing myth that was brought back into the spotlight as of recently, every time a Pope dies Avellino get promoted. In reality this is a half truth. This story bases itself on the following coincidences: 1958Pope Pius XII diesAvellino promoted to Serie C1963Pope John XXIII diesAvellino promoted to Serie C1978Pope Paul XI diesPope John Paul I diesAvellino promoted to Serie A 2005Pope John Paul II diesAvellino promoted to Serie B 2013Pope Benedict XVI steps downAvellino promoted to Serie B 2025Pope Francis diesAvellino promoted to Serie BThe first inconsistency is pretty easily spotted, in 2013 Pope Benedict...

It was recently announced that in 2026 the Brazilian National Team's away jersey will not be blue. In fact Nike, with the federations approval, has decided that the away jersey won't have any of the colors in the Brazilian flag. Even though no further information was given at the moment, this is a great opportunity to remember the rich history behind Brazil's blue away jersey. The story starts in 1950 when Brazil, like a lot national teams and clubs, only had one set of uniforms: white. However, Brazil lost the 1950 World Cup final at home against Uruguay in a...

Figuratively speaking it is common to call a teams stadium a "fortress" during an unbeaten run at home. FC Duruji Kvareli however took the saying literally. The Kvareli Fortress, located in the small town of Kvareli in Georgia, was constructed between the 17th and 19th century, renovated in 1985, and became a soccer stadium for the local team. Duruji Kvareli turned the fortress into a pitch with a capacity of about 1,000 fans where they hosted their home games, making it perhaps the most unique stadium in the planet. Durji Kvareli featured in the Georgian first division between 1994 and...