In 1995, Cláudio França made the decisive move from Brazil to the United States, arriving at a moment when Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu was widely misunderstood by the American public and frequently conflated with mixed martial arts. Recognizing the untapped potential for sport BJJ to develop independently on American soil, França founded Claudio Franca BJJ — commonly known as CFBJJ — in Santa Cruz, California, making him one of the first instructors to open a dedicated BJJ academy in the country.
CFBJJ quickly earned a reputation as one of the most respected academies in the United States, attracting students drawn to França's rigorous technical instruction and his vision for jiu-jitsu as a standalone competitive sport. The academy became a developmental hub for high-level grapplers, producing notable black belt graduates including Garth Taylor and Paul Schreiner, both of whom went on to make significant contributions to the sport in their own right.