FC Alverca was founded on 1 September 1939, the very day the Second World War began. On 1 September 2027 it turns 88. And it celebrates where it now belongs: in Portugal's top flight.

Third time lucky

Futebol Clube de Alverca was not the town's first club. Before it came Alverca Futebol Clube, around 1922, and Sporting Clube de Alverca, around 1930. According to the sources, the second one's name came out of a vote between Sporting and Benfica supporters.

Both faded away because they were never officially recognised. From 1937 a group of young people in Alverca do Ribatejo, near Lisbon, started again from scratch. They signed up members, wrote statutes and won state approval, and the present club was finally born.

Table tennis, cycling and then football

In its early years the club focused on table tennis and cycling. The senior football team only started in 1942. For decades it played in local leagues, until in 1970-71 it reached a national division for the first time.

In 1974, for geographical reasons, it moved from the Santarém football association to Lisbon's. Its own fans proudly call it "O maior do Ribatejo", the biggest club in the Ribatejo. Its mascot is a bull, a symbol of the region.

Blue, red and white

Alverca's colours are blue, red and white. The classic shirt is blue with a red vertical stripe down the middle, worn with blue shorts and socks. The away kit was traditionally all white, just as the old Alverca FC had worn white.

The sources do not explain where the colours came from. For 2026-27 Nike brought a fresh take under the slogan "Uma Nova Altitude". The home shirt is white with a bold red stripe on the left, the second shirt is blue with the same red, and the third is black with anthracite stripes.

The Benfica years and the stars of tomorrow

In the 1990s Alverca became a satellite club of Benfica, which sent it players on loan. In 1996 it opened its sports complex, and in 1998 it played in the top flight for the first time. It was the first club from the Ribatejo to get there.

Its best finish was 11th, in 1999-2000. The shirt was worn by a young Deco, Ricardo Carvalho, Maniche and Mantorras. In 2002 its youngsters also won the national under-19 championship.

Collapse, rebirth and Vinícius

In 2005 debts passed 2.5 million euros and the football team folded. It was rebuilt from Lisbon's regional leagues and climbed back step by step. In October 2019 it beat Sporting 2-0 in the cup, with Alex Apolinário among the scorers; he died far too young in 2021.

In February 2025 Real Madrid's Vinícius Júnior and his partners bought a majority of the club's company. After winning Liga 3 in 2024, Alverca finished second in Liga 2 in 2025 and returned to the top division after 21 years. In its first season back, 2025-26, it finished 11th and stays in the Primeira Liga.

Celebrate with us

From a group of young people in 1939 to Portugal's biggest stadiums, Alverca has never stopped reinventing itself. Happy birthday to the biggest club in the Ribatejo!

See our collectible jerseys at sportarena.gr.

Photo: The 1530 pillory in Alverca do Ribatejo – Vitor Oliveira, Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.