Sociedade Esportiva Palmeiras (Brazilian Portuguese: [sosiedˈadʒi ispoɾtʃˈivə pawmˈejɾəs] (listen)) is a Brazilian professional football club based in the city of Sao Paulo, in the district of Perdizes. Palmeiras is one of the most popular clubs, with the most trophies and the most success in Brazil, with around 18 million supporters and 126,000 affiliated fans, including many Brazilians of Italian ancestry. Despite being primarily an association football team, Palmeiras competes in a number of different sports. The football team plays in the Campeonato Paulista, the state of Sao Paulo's premier state league, as well as in the Brasileirao Serie A, the top tier of the Brazilian football league system.
Palmeiras was founded by Italian immigrants on August 26, 1914, as "Palestra Italia" (pronounced [paˌlɛstɾiˈtaliɐ]). However, the club changed its name on September 14, 1942, as a result of Brazil joining the Allies in the Second World War against Italy (in Portuguese "Italia") and the Axis power. Since then, Palmeiras has won 15 national competitions, including a record 10 Campeonato Brasileiro Serie A, 4 Copa do Brasil, and 1 Copa dos Campeoes, making it the most successful club in domestic competitions inside Brazil. In international club football, the Brazilian giant has won the 1951 Copa Rio, the 1999 and 2020 Copa Libertadores, and the 1998 Copa Mercosul. The club has also been successful at a regional level as they have won 5 Interstate titles (Torneio Rio – Sao Paulo), and 23 State Championship titles (Campeonato Paulista). Palmeiras currently occupies the second position on the CBF ranking.
The club has a long-standing rivalry with Corinthians, and matches between the two teams are referred to as Derby Paulista. Palmeiras also holds rivalries with Sao Paulo and Santos.
This page also has a version in other languages : Палмейрас (russian)