The team was created in 1901 in response to the creation of a team for São Paulo, since at the beginning of the 20th century these were the two centers where the practice of football began in Brazil.[citation needed]
Because they preceded the Brazil national squad which played its first match in 1914, sometimes Rio de Janeiro represented the country (as did the São Paulo state team), against foreign squads that toured South America, or against Argentina, who in that period were more developed in the practice of football.[1]
Rio de Janeiro was the capital of Brazil until 1960, year of construction of Brasília, then the Seleção Carioca represented the Federal District (later, the Guanabara State) until in 1975, there was the unification of the city of Rio de Janeiro with the state of Rio de Janeiro. There was also the Rio de Janeiro state football team (countryside), called Seleção Fluminense (1922–1978), who faced the Seleção Carioca several times in previous decades.
