Athié Jorge Coury, an unforgettable Santos president | OneFootball

Guilherme Guarche, Memory Center

Born on August 1, 1904, in the city of Itu, São Paulo — “the cradle of the Republic” — Athié Jorge Coury would have his name forever linked to Santos’s century-old history and would never cease to be revered by the black-and-white supporters, especially those who saw and followed Pelé and the great Santos team reign supreme on every continent.His actions and personal conduct, always delegating responsibilities, were the highlights of his management at the seaside club, proof of which was that helpful directors such as Modesto Roma, Nicolau Moran Villar, and Augusto da Silva Saraiva stood by his side.As a goalkeeper, Athié was also one of the best in Brazil, defending Santos’s goal from 1927 to 1934. He remained the most successful president of a football team for 26 straight years, leading the club to countless official titles between 1945 and 1971. In public life, he conducted himself admirably, defending the interests of the city and its workers.Athié completed primary and secondary school at Colégio São Luís, in his hometown, where his family owned a coffee plantation. He later moved to Piracicaba (SP), where he studied surveying up to the second year. In the state capital, he earned a degree in Economics from Mackenzie College.As a teenager, he studied and played as goalkeeper for Esporte Clube Sírio. A friend of several Santos players, Athié was persuaded to play for the Black-and-White by Ricardo Pinto de Oliveira and Zeca Ratto, Santos directors.When he agreed to come down the mountain range toward the Baixada Santista, he immediately became a partner in a coffee brokerage firm, at a time when the country was the world’s largest producer and exporter of coffee beans.He joined Santos on September 9, 1927, and his proposer was president Guilherme Gonçalves, at the request of the general sports director Urbano Caldeira.Urbano wanted a goalkeeper to play for the reserve team and challenge the then starter Tuffy, “the Black Satan,” who two months later would be expelled from Vila Belmiro. Athié then took over as the first-choice goalkeeper and became part of the “100-goal attack team.”His first appearance for the Vila squad came on October 9, 1927, at the age of 23, in a 9–0 win over Corinthians de Santo André, in a friendly at the stadium that did not yet bear the name Urbano Caldeira. That Sunday, Feitiço scored five goals, Siriri three, and Camarão one. The team lined up as: Athié, Bilú and David; Alfredo, Júlio and Hugo; Omar, Camarão, Siriri, Feitiço and Passos.In the following years, he was always called up to play for the São Paulo state team and was a certain pick as the main goalkeeper for the Brazilian national team at the first FIFA World Cup, in 1930, in Uruguay.However, due to disagreements between the São Paulo officials and the then Brazilian Sports Confederation (CBD), already based in Rio de Janeiro, no athletes from São Paulo were called up, and Athié ended up missing the world competition.During the Constitutionalist Revolution of 1932, he was a commissioned second lieutenant and fought in defense of the State of São Paulo. He was part of the brave athlete-soldiers who strove to ensure that the Constitution would be respected by then-president Getúlio Vargas.His final appearance in Santos’s goal came on April 15, 1934, a Sunday, in a 3–0 defeat to Palestra Itália, now Palmeiras. Valid for the São Paulo Championship, the match was played at Vila Belmiro. His position was taken over by Cyro Maciel Portieri, nicknamed “Black Cat.”From sports director to eternal presidentAfter serving as sports director, Athié became Santos’s 22nd president on February 27, 1945, succeeding Antônio Ezequiel Feliciano da Silva. One of his vice presidents was Ulysses Silveira Guimarães (*10/06/1916 + 10/12/1992), who would later become a prominent politician and, from 1988 onward, would be known as “Mr. Diretas.”At the end of 1946, the boldness of the dynamic president led the Black-and-White to a true epic journey across the pitches of Brazil’s North and Northeast. It was the biggest tour ever undertaken by a football team in the country. The delegation visited the states of Pernambuco (three matches), Rio Grande do Norte (two), Ceará (four), Maranhão (three), and finally Pará (three). The team returned home unbeaten. In 15 matches, it won 12, drew three, scored 52 goals, and conceded 17.In 1945, Athié joined the Social Progressive Party (PSP), through which he was elected city councilman in Santos, serving on the City Council from 1947 to 1949. During this period, he donated his earnings to local charitable institutions and also to Santa Casa de Santos.He was elected state deputy in 1950, serving on several occasions until 1963, when he was declared federal deputy, remaining in the National Congress until 1982.He built the best team in the worldDuring his long period at the helm of the club, Santos achieved the greatest glories a club could achieve, not only through titles — such as back-to-back Copa Libertadores and World Championship triumphs — but through beautiful, captivating, attack-minded football.He resolutely resisted the tempting offers from foreign clubs that wanted to sign the Black-and-White’s main idols, especially King Pelé. During this golden era, Santos traveled the world, showcasing itself in every corner of the Earth before packed stadiums.On the African continent, it stopped a war and promoted peace in regions where King Pelé was adored like a deity. The Argentine magazine El Gráfico named the 1962/63 two-time world champion team the best of all time. The first-choice lineup was Gylmar, Mauro and Dalmo; Lima, Zito and Calvet; Dorval, Mengálvio, Coutinho, Pelé and Pepe. The coach was Luís Alonso Perez, Lula.The exemplary director only failed to earn a perfect ten as Santos president because the purchase of the Parque Balneário Hotel, in 1965, proved to be one of the worst deals in the Black-and-White’s century-long existence. The debts accumulated from the bad transaction harmed the team and forced the club to sell the luxury property at the beginning of the following decade.In the election to choose the Santos president, in February 1971, Athié lost at the polls to Vasco José Faé, and then decided, very reluctantly, to step away from Santos’s political life, devoting himself exclusively to his career as a representative of the people in the National Congress.He presided over the Santos Coffee Exchange and worked with then-mayor Paulo Gomes Barbosa to secure the land that belonged to the Brazilian Coffee Institute (IBC), at the entrance to the city of Santos, where the Chico Formiga Complex stands today.In his honor, the club gave his name to the sports gymnasium inaugurated at Urbano Caldeira Stadium in 1950. Athié also received the title of Santos President Emeritus. The Federal Government gave his name to the housing complex in the Saboó neighborhood of Santos. The state government, meanwhile, named a school in the Aparecida neighborhood after Olga Coury, the mother of the Santos president.During the period in which he presided over Peixe, Santos played 1,687 matches, recording 1,035 wins, 291 draws, and 361 losses, with 4,630 goals scored and 2,549 conceded. As a player, Athié wore the No. 1 shirt in 171 matches and is the 14th goalkeeper with the most appearances in Santos’s goal.The Black-and-White’s greatest leader off the pitch died on a Tuesday, December 1, 1992, at the age of 88, at Beneficência Portuguesa Hospital, in Santos.Titles won during his tenure1948 – City of Santos Cup and Cup Winners’ Cup1949 – City of São Paulo Cup1951 – Belo Horizonte Quadrangular Tournament1952 – Santos Cup1955 – São Paulo State Championship1956 – São Paulo State Championship, FPF International Tournament, San-São Cup and Invincibles Cup1958 – São Paulo State Championship1959 – Rio-São Paulo Tournament, Teresa Herrera Trophy, Valencia Tournament, Mexico Pentagonal Tournament and Mario Echandi Tournament1960 – São Paulo State Championship, Paris Tournament and Giallorosso Trophy1961 – Brazil Cup, São Paulo State Championship, Italy Tournament, Paris Tournament, Costa Rica Triangular and Guadalajara Pentagonal1962 – Copa Libertadores de América, Intercontinental Cup, Brazil Cup and São Paulo State Championship1963 – Copa Libertadores de América, Intercontinental Cup, Brazil Cup and Rio-São Paulo Tournament1964 – São Paulo State Championship, Brazil Cup and Rio-São Paulo Tournament1965 – São Paulo State Championship, Brazil Cup, Buenos Aires Quadrangular, Caracas 4th Centennial Tournament and Chile Hexagonal1966 – Rio-São Paulo Tournament and New York Tournament1967 – São Paulo State Championship and Florence-Rome Triangular Tournament1968 – São Paulo State Championship, Roberto Gomes Pedrosa Tournament, World Recopa, South American Recopa, Buenos Aires Pentagonal, Chile Octagonal Tournament and Amazon Tournament1969 – São Paulo State Championship and Cuiabá Tournament1970 – Chile Hexagonal Tournament, City of São Paulo Cup and Guatemala Triangular Tournament1971 – Jamaica Triangular Tournament

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