On 22 January 1932 seven young men from Amadora, next to Lisbon, founded Estrela da Amadora. On 22 January 2027 it will be 95 years since that day. It is the story of a "star" that went out, was born again and still wears the colours of a Brazilian club.

Seven friends and a star

The founders were seven local young men who had been left without a team when Lusitano da Amadora was dissolved. According to one source, they met in a tavern.

According to legend, one of them, Júlio da Conceição, pointed at the stars in the sky and suggested the name Estrela, "star". Everyone agreed at once.

The first match was played in April 1932 against Palmense and ended in a 2-1 win. Estrela played in shirts borrowed from neighbours Porcalhota. The club was only officially registered in January 1940.

Fluminense's gift

Estrela's first shirt had nothing to do with today's. It was blue with a horizontal green stripe, worn with white shorts and green socks.

In 1951 Brazilian club Fluminense gave the small Amadora team three full sets of kit. The members decided to adopt the donor's colours. So Estrela became tricolour, in red, white and green, and got the nickname Tricolores.

In 2005 the team tried a white shirt that copied the crest. It had red on the left, white in the middle and green on the right.

The José Gomes and the 1990 Cup

Since the 1957-58 season the team has played at the Estádio José Gomes, in the Reboleira district. Before that it played on a ground in Venteira.

The first trophy came in 1949, the Taça de Lisboa. In 1988 the team reached the top flight for the first time and finished eighth in its debut season.

The greatest moment came in 1990. In the Taça de Portugal final against Farense, the first match ended 1-1 after extra time. In the replay João Alves's Estrela won 2-0.

That took them into Europe for the first time, in the 1990-91 Cup Winners' Cup. They knocked out Neuchâtel Xamax on penalties before going out to RFC Liège.

A nursery for stars

Paulo Bento, Jorge Andrade, Abel Xavier, Dimas and Paulo Ferreira all wore the Estrela shirt. Later, Rúben Dias also came through the club.

Coaches such as Jorge Jesus, Fernando Santos and Jesualdo Ferreira sat on its bench. José Mourinho worked there as assistant to Manuel Fernandes.

The star that shone again

Financial problems led to two relegations in 2009 and to bankruptcy. In May 2010 it played its last official match, a defeat to Real Massamá, and in 2011 the historic club ceased to exist.

The supporters did not give up and founded Clube Desportivo Estrela, which kept the legacy alive. In 2020 it merged with Sintra Football, creating today's football company (SAD) Club Football Estrela da Amadora.

In 2023 the new Estrela reached the Primeira Liga, beating Marítimo on penalties in the play-off. Formally it is a new entity, but for its fans it is the same star of 1932.

Celebrate with us

From seven friends gazing at the sky to the return to the top flight, Estrela's tricolour shirt has never stopped shining. Happy 95th founding anniversary to the Tricolores!

See our collectible jerseys at sportarena.gr.

Photo: the Estádio José Gomes during a Primeira Liga match (2024) – Johnnypp005, Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC0 1.0.