크루지아로 드 포토 알레그로 RS

The club was founded on July 14, 1913, in Porto Alegre. From 1913 to 2018, the team was based in Porto Alegre, being one of the main teams in the city along with Grêmio, Internacional and São José. It was one of the main powers of the state until it entered a period of decline in the 1960s. The club was pioneer of Rio Grande do Sul to tour Europe, making its first trip in 1953. 1960, the club won an international friendly tournament in East Germany, known as the "Torneio de Páscoa" (Easter Tournament) against multiple teams from Eastern and Western Germany. Cruzeiro won the title after defeating Vorwaerts Berlin and tying with Dynamo Berlin.

Cruzeiro competed in the Série D in 2011, when the club was eliminated in the first stage of the competition.

João de Assis Moreira, the father of the legendary Brazilian footballer Ronaldinho, had a brief spell with the club.

In 2012, construction began on a new stadium in the city of Cachoeirinha, located in the metropolitan area of Porto Alegre. The Arena Cruzeiro, which was inaugurated on March 13, 2019.