This article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. Please improve this article if you can. (October 2008)

This article does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (June 2008)

Torcidas are formal (or informal) associations of football fans in Brazil in the same vein as Argentine hinchadas and European ultras. The name is based on the verb torcer, which means "to root for" but also "to wring" and "to turn". The supposition is that the behaviour of the fans present at the stadium could help the team gather strength to beat the opponent.

In the beginning, and until the sixties, torcidas were informal associations of fans who gathered to buy fireworks, cloth for large flags, and other stuff to be used during celebrations. Later, such associations became permanent and were formalised legally as non-profit recreational associations, still with the primary goal of providing a better spectacle at the stadium and surroundings. Some of the noteworthy torcidas from this time were Torcida Jovem do Botafogo (Botafogo de Futebol e Regatas), Torcida Jovem do Santos (Santos Futebol Clube), Mancha Verde (Sociedade Esportiva Palmeiras), Gaviões da Fiel (Corinthians), Galoucura (Clube Atlético Mineiro), Máfia Azul (Cruzeiro Esporte Clube), Independente (São Paulo Futebol Clube), Raça Rubro-Negra, (Clube de Regatas do Flamengo), Força Jovem Vasco (Club de Regatas Vasco da Gama), Young Flu and Força Flu (Fluminense Football Club), Fúria Independente (Paraná Clube), Imperio Alviverde (Coritiba Foot Ball Club), Os Fanáticos (Clube Atlético Paranaense), Torcida Jovem do Sport (Sport Club do Recife), Fanáutico ( Clube Náutico Capibaribe) and Inferno Coral (Santa Cruz Futebol Clube). In the beginning the torcida movement was fragmentary, but would later consolidate in larger bodies or leagues. Some torcidas would open branches throughout the country to support their teams playing away, given the national range of their supporters.

Torcidas would later become infamous for their association with stadium violence, which would cause Justice to disband some of them (notably Gaviões da Fiel). Some clubs (notably Flamengo) would also be plagued by rival torcidas which would battle each other as well as the opponent's.

The Brazil influence stretched into Europe through Torcida Split, a formal associations of Hajduk Split FC fans in the Croatian Dalmatia region. Torcida Split is now the oldest (1950) organized supporters' group in Europe.

[edit] Setting Torcidas apart from Barras Bravas/Ultras

The torcidas have a different supporting style: instead of singing all the time, they tend to be 'fair' with themselves. If the supported team is doing well (even if losing the match), the support will be there. If it is barely trying, it will be booed and players will be offended. Sometimes it even works, as the players may get angry or regret their attitudes, and may try to stop the bad treatment by working hard to revert the score.