Coritiba FC

Coritiba are the dean of football in Paraná and a rare case of a club whose name is older than the spelling reform: founded in 1909 by Curitiba's German community, the name was registered in the orthography of the day and never changed. From the German origin came the green and white and the tastiest nickname in Brazilian football, Coxa-Branca, white thigh, born as mockery of the immigrants' pale legs and turned into a badge of honour. Home is the Couto Pereira, in the Alto da Glória neighbourhood, and the history has two peaks the world knows: the 1985 Brazilian championship, the first ever for the state of Paraná, decided on penalties against Bangu in a packed Maracanã, and the world record of 24 consecutive wins in 2011, certified by Guinness. Outright record holder of state championships and owner of half of the Atletiba, one of the country's oldest derbies, the Coxa live between Série A and Série B with the same old certainty: in Curitiba, football speaks with a German accent and dresses in green and white.