Ser Benfiquista

"Ser Benfiquista"
Song
LanguagePortuguese
English title"Being a Benfiquista"
Written1953
Songwriter(s)Manuel Paulino Gomes Júnior

"Ser Benfiquista" (Portuguese pronunciation: [seɾ βɐ̃jfiˈkiʃtɐ]; English: "Being a Benfiquista") is the current anthem of Portuguese sports club S.L. Benfica.

The song acknowledges Benfica's humble beginnings and shows that being a benfiquista (a supporter of Benfica) is more than being a football fan. It is sung before every home match and sometimes during the match.[1] It was written by Manuel Paulino Gomes Júnior and first sung on 16 April 1953 by tenor Luís Piçarra in the presence of 6,000 benfiquistas at a sarau in Benfica's old arena Pavilhão dos Desportos, with the goal of raising money to build the original Estádio da Luz.[1][2]

The original anthem, composed by Félix Bermudes in 1929, was called "Avante Benfica" ("Onward Benfica"). It was censored by the Estado Novo[3] in 1942 because of the political connotation of the word avante,[4] which was considered an affront to the establishment.[5]

  1. ^ a b Weiss, Jessica (27 March 2012). "For Soccer Fans, Showing Support in Song". The New York Times. Retrieved 5 February 2013.
  2. ^ Pereira, Luís Miguel (November 2009). Bíblia do Benfica [Benfica Bible] (in Portuguese) (7th ed.). Portugal: Prime Books. p. 144. ISBN 978-989-655-005-9.
  3. ^ Sousa, Hugo Daniel; Curado, Paulo (25 April 2013). "O futebol é mais instrumentalizado hoje do que foi durante o Estado Novo" [Football today is more orchestrated than it was during the Estado Novo]. Público (in Portuguese). Retrieved 26 June 2015.
  4. ^ "Salazar proibiu hino ao Benfica" [Salazar banned Benfica's anthem]. A Bola (in Portuguese). Retrieved 5 June 2015.
  5. ^ Pereira, Luís Miguel (November 2009). Bíblia do Benfica [Benfica Bible] (in Portuguese) (7th ed.). Portugal: Prime Books. p. 191. ISBN 978-989-655-005-9.