History
Polonia Warsaw was formed in the autumn of 1911 as a union of two school teams. The founder of the club was captain Wacław Denhoff-Czarnocki, who also came up with the name of the club. Polonia is Latin for "Poland" and is often used by Polish ex-patriates in reference to their communities in other countries. The choice of such a name was a brave decision at the time, since Poland was not an independent country, and Warsaw was a part of Russian partition.
Initially the players played in black-and-white striped shirts, but in the spring of 1912, they switched to their now traditional design of all black shirts. The legendary patriotic explanation for this color scheme was that it was a sign of mourning for the occupied and divided motherland of Poland. This lasting devotion to tradition resulted in the club's popular name: The Black Shirts. The uniform's white shorts and red socks come from the colors of the Polish flag.
The club's first match on 19 November 1911 was against a strong local rival, Korona, and ended 3–4 in favor of Korona. Two years later, in February 1913, The Black Shirts defeated Korona 4–0.
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