Nação

In 2024, a set of original founding minutes turned up and settled a question the club had carried for over a century: Clube Náutico Marcílio Dias, from Itajaí in Santa Catarina, had been formed on 17 March 1919. The name itself was borrowed from a naval hero of the Paraguayan War, and the red and blue on the shirt were chosen as a tribute to two clubs from Florianópolis, Riachuelo and Martinelli, blue for one and red for the other.

Goals have mattered more than medals in how the club is remembered. Idésio Moreira scored more than 150 of them and stands as the all-time top scorer, with Aquiles and Renê Pinto both past a century of goals in the same shirt. Gelson Silva passed through on his way to winning the Copa Libertadores with Grêmio.

The rivalry that still sets the tone in Itajaí is the derby against Almirante Barroso, sharpened in recent years by matches against Atlético de Itajaí.