Athletico 100 years: Bellini, the first captain of the penta

On July 29, 1958, King Gustav of Sweden presented the Jules Rimet Cup to Bellini, the captain of the Brazilian team that had just won the World Cup. He was surrounded by photographers who could see the trophy and asked: “Bellini, raise the cup!”

Then, the first penta captain lifted her with both arms over her head and immortalized the gesture that enshrines a great achievement, repeated by all champions since then.

Defender with a vigorous style and natural leader, Hideraldo Luiz Bellini was a legend of Brazilian football in 1967, after three World Cups with the team, when the president Joffre Cabral e Silva, in a move of great boldness, invited him to play for Athletico. Bellini had an offer from the New York Generals on the table, and it was his wife, Giselda, who decided to come to Curitiba.

The two arrived on February 7th and for 48 hours the captain gave interviews, was honored and participated in ceremonies. Two days later, he signed his last professional contract with the red and black, at the age of 37.

The 17 months in which he wore the red and black shirt were the last step of his career and a huge milestone in the life of Athletico. His presence here is a turning point for football, which from then on began to be taken seriously in the rest of the country.

Bellini was a big celebrity in the city and his handsome appearance made him the poster boy for Frischmans, a traditional men’s fashion store in Curitiba. On the field, the defender still got the job done, leading the team that narrowly missed the title in 1968.

The farewell to Bellini, Athletico and football, was extraordinary, and why not say, intergalactic. An Atletiba in Baixada on July 20th, the same Sunday that cosmonaut Neil Armstrong first set foot on the Moon. Orlando Silva, the singer of the crowds, was summoned to give a speech in honor of Bellini with his tenor voice and hand over a silver plate.

At the exact minute that Apollo 11 was descending on the lunar surface, Bellini raised the red-black number 3 shirt, to the applause of the two fans on an Olympic lap in the old Baixada who watched the unforgettable scene in tears.