The origins of capoeira are still uncertain as of today, there are many different versions. The one we give here is the most commonly known among great capoeira masters and historians.

During the 1500s, masses of West African slaves were imported into Brazil by the Portuguese colonizers. They were thought to be source of inexpensive labour, which would work on the sugar plantations and create colonial wealth for the Portuguese crown.

After years of mistreatment, torture, inhumane living conditions and yearning for their freedom, the slaves began to up rise against their masters. Aware that their masters' superiority lay in the possession of weapons, the slaves came up with the idea of using their bodies to attack and defend themselves through a series of dangerous moves that would help them fight their captors. African songs and dances were used to disguise their training sessions so that their superiors would not become alarmed. With time their art and expertise grew and finally reached the point where they could use it to escape into the woods. Their style of fighting became known as 'Capoeira' because in Portuguese it was associated with the saying 'The black fled to the woods'.

After the abolition of slavery, the ex-slaves migrated into the cities of Brazil and continued to practice Capoeira. The art was for a time associated with anti-government and criminal activities as a majority of the ex-slaves had ended up in criminal gangs due to the lack of employment opportunities and a persistent unofficial but strong racial discrimination. As a result, Capoeira was outlawed in 1892. Punishment for the illegal practice of the art resulted in the cutting of tendons on the back of the feet. Rodas were often held in areas with plenty of escape routes, and a special rhythm called A Cavalaria was added to the music to warn players that the police were coming. Practitioners gave themselves an apelido or nickname to make it harder for the police to discover their identities. This practice is prevalent today, when a person is baptized into Capoeira, they are given their Capoeira name.

In 1937, Mestre Bimba, a great capoeirista who had fought to have the art recognized as a worthy physical activity, was invited to demonstrate Capoeira in front of the President of Brazil. After this performance, he was given permission to open the first Capoeira school in Brazil and Capoeira was proclaimed a 'truly Brazilian' sport which should be valued. Since then, Capoeira has been officially recognized as a national sport, and has spread around the world. Mestre Bimba's systematization and teaching of Capoeira has made a tremendous contribution to the Capoeira community.

In 1942, Mestre Pastinha opened the first Capoeira Angola school, the Centro Esportivo de Capoeira Angola in Bahia. He had his students wear black pants and yellow t-shirts, the same colour then his favourite soccer team. Most Angola schools since then follow in this tradition, having their students wear yellow Capoeira t-shirts. Together, Mestre Bimba and Mestre Pastinha are seen as the founding fathers of the two dominant style of capoeira; respectively Capoeira Regional and Capoeira Angola.

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