(R/T) Campeonato Brasileiro 2025 Round 38, and (almost) end of season in Brasil
From
=?UTF-8?B?TGzDqW8=?=@llb.moura@gmail.com to
rec.sport.soccer on Sun Dec 7 20:01:00 2025
From Newsgroup: rec.sport.soccer
Season's almost over in Brasil, as we'll still have Copa do Brasil
semifinals and final, which are to be played over the next couple of
weeks. But the league's last round was today. Palmeiras had put on a
brave stand against Flamengo for the title over the season, but faltered
on the last stretch and the championship was clinched one round early. Cruzeiro and Mirassol have also guaranteed their Libertadores group
stage spots for a while already. Fluminense, Bahia and Botafogo were
also qualified to Copa Libertadores, playing for the right to skip the preliminary round. In the bottom, Juventude and Sport had already booked
their Serie B spots.
Copa do Brasil semifinals are going to be Cruzeiro vs Corinthians and Fluminense vs Vasco, to be played on December 10th, 11th and 14th, and
the winners play the finals on December 17th and 21st.
Mirassol 3-3 Flamengo
Flamengo had already clinched the title in Round 37, while Mirassol had already guaranteed their 4th place finish. So, this game was moved to yesterday, Flamengo fielded reserves as their squad is traveling to
Saudi Arabia for the Intercontinental Cup. Flamengo had a season-long
standoff with Palmeiras, but it has to be said they were the deserved
winners. Mirassol's run was a huge surprise: one of the smallest cities
to have ever been represented in the Brazilian top flight, they were
generally expected to struggle and then drop back down to Serie B.
Instead, the airport of neighboring S|uo Jos|- do Rio Preto is being
adapted to run international flights, for the club's coming forays into
South American competition.
Fluminense 2-0 Bahia
Fluminense clinches a spot in Copa Libertadores group stage in a
showdown against Bahia at Maracan|u. The baianos are off to the
preliminary round.
Botafogo 4-2 Fortaleza
Quite a bit of drama on this one at Est|idio Nilton Santos. Fortaleza was
deep inside the relegation zone, but a run of nine games without a loss
(five wins and four draws) lifted them just above the relegation line
just in time for the last round. Botafogo, for their part, was playing
for a Libertadores group stage spot - which they might still inherit, if Cruzeiro or Fluminense win Copa do Brasil.
At some point Botafogo opened a 3-1 advantage, but that goal was called
off because of a handball inside their own penalty area at the beginning
of the play, which became a penalty for Fortaleza. 3-1 suddenly became
2-2 and Fortaleza seemed set on to complete their great escape, but
Botafogo kept pressing on and two late goals (plus a couple of adverse
results in Vit||ria's and Inter's games) finished them and called off the prospective Houdini act.
Corinthians 1-1 Juventude
Pretty much meaningless game. Corinthians had cleared relegation worries
for a while and didn't even need this point to clinch a Copa
Sudamericana spot, while Juventude was already relegated.
Santos 3-0 Cruzeiro
Santos spent a lot of time in the relegation zone or its whereabouts,
but sprung to life in the last three games. Neymar scored four goals
against already relegated Sport and Juventude, and in the last round, it
was homework against Cruzeiro reserves (since their minds are already at
the cup semifinals). Cruzeiro had an excellent campaign, shadowing
Flamengo and Palmeiras all over the season as an outside title
challenger, though never really closing the gap enough to actually go
for it.
Atl|-tico Mineiro 5-0 Vasco da Gama
Another midtable dead rubber and a melancholic end of season for both
sides. Vasco had already cleared relegation worries, while Galo had infinitesimally low chances of getting involved in that (it would
require a number of adverse results, some possibly going near or into
double digits). At some point Vasco dreamed of a top-8 finish, but that
was swiftly crushed by a run of 7 losses in the last 8 games. Futebol
sucks.
Internacional 3-1 RB Bragantino
Inter had been tailspinning in the last few rounds, with a couple of
heavy defeats against that left them in deep trouble for the last round.
They needed to win and hope for two other results go their way. They
brought Abel Braga (world champion with them in 2006) for the last two
rounds as a desperate last stand. At Beira-Rio they did their part
against an RB Bragantino that had little to play for and, elsewhere,
things fell on their places and they completed the Houdini act, closely avoiding the drop at the expense of Cear|i and Fortaleza.
Vit||ria 1-0 S|uo Paulo
Vit||ria also entered the last round in trouble, needing a win against an uninterested S|uo Paulo, but having also to count on at least one other
result going their way. They pulled it midway through the second half
and guaranteed their survival.
Cear|i 1-3 Palmeiras
Unlike their rivals, who were in deep relegation trouble but seemed to
be on the way of a miraculous escape, Cear|i had not spent a single one
of the previous 37 rounds inside the relegation zone. Their final
stretch was cruel, facing the top three sides in the last three games.
They even scored the opener against a Palmeiras side who was just
playing for pride, but a comeback in front of their crowd at Arena
Castel|uo sent them into the relegation zone for the only round they
couldn't allow it to happen - the last one.
Sport 0-4 Gr|-mio
Another filler game with a predictably easy win for Gr|-mio, against a
Sport side that had been long relegated and pulled one of the worst ever
Serie A runs since it became a double round-robin.
Table [pos, team, points, games, wins, draws, losses, goals scored-goals against, goal difference]
Botafogo will inherit a Libertadores group stage spot if Cruzeiro or Fluminense win Copa do Brasil, pulling S|uo Paulo to the pre-Libertadores round. If Corinthians or Vasco win the cup, though, they go into the CL
1st round instead, Botafogo stays at the preliminary round and S|uo Paulo
at Copa Sudamericana.
1 Flamengo 79 38 23 10 5 78 27 51+ Champions, CL winner
2 Palmeiras 76 38 23 7 8 66 33 33+ Copa Libertadores
3 Cruzeiro 70 38 19 13 6 55 31 24+ Copa Libertadores
4 Mirassol 67 38 18 13 7 63 39 24+ Copa Libertadores
5 Fluminense 64 38 19 7 12 50 39 11+ Copa Libertadores ---------------------------------------------
6 Botafogo 63 38 17 12 9 58 38 20+ CL 1st/Prelim. Round ---------------------------------------------
7 Bahia 60 38 17 9 12 50 46 4+ CL Preliminary Round ---------------------------------------------
8 S|uo Paulo 51 38 14 9 15 43 47 4- Sudamericana/Libertadores
9 Gr|-mio 49 38 13 10 15 47 50 3- Copa Sudamericana
10 RB Bragantino 48 38 14 6 18 45 57 12- Copa Sudamericana
11 Atl|-tico Mineiro 48 38 12 12 14 43 44 1- Copa Sudamericana
12 Santos 47 38 12 11 15 45 50 5- Copa Sudamericana
13 Corinthians 47 38 12 11 15 42 47 5- Copa Sudamericana
14 Vasco da Gama 45 38 13 6 19 55 60 5- Sudamericana/Libertadores ---------------------------------------------
15 Vit||ria 45 38 11 12 15 35 52 17-
16 Internacional 44 38 12 10 16 44 57 13- ---------------------------------------------
17 Cear|i 43 38 11 10 17 34 40 6- Relegated to Serie B
18 Fortaleza 43 38 11 10 17 43 58 15- Relegated to Serie B
19 Juventude 35 38 9 8 21 35 69 34- Relegated to Serie B
20 Sport 17 38 2 11 25 28 75 47- Relegated to Serie B
Serie B had an exciting finish this season. Coritiba guaranteed
promotion a couple of rounds early, but only really clinched the title
in the last round. The other three promotion spots were decided there
too. Athletico Paranaense seemed to be in trouble, but a late surge
almost had them stealing 1st place from their crosstown rivals.
Chapecoense returns to Serie A too, as does Remo, on the strength of back-to-back promotions. A very popular club in the North of Brasil,
Remo is the first club from the region in Serie A since 2005, when their crosstown rivals Paysandu played in it for the last time.
And their promotion is doubly sweetened by the fact that Paysandu
themselves have been relegated to Serie C. Ferrovi|iria and Volta Redonda bounce back down too, as does Amazonas, after only their second season
in Serie B.
1 Coritiba 68 38 19 11 8 39 23 16+ Promoted to Serie A
2 Athl. Paranaense 65 38 19 8 11 53 43 10+ Promoted to Serie A
3 Chapecoense 62 38 18 8 12 52 35 17+ Promoted to Serie A
4 Remo 62 38 16 14 8 51 39 12+ Promoted to Serie A ---------------------------------------------
5 Crici||ma 61 38 17 10 11 47 33 14+
6 Goi|is 61 38 17 10 11 42 37 5+
7 Novorizontino 60 38 15 15 8 43 32 11+
8 CRB 56 38 16 8 14 45 40 5+
9 Ava|! 56 38 14 14 10 50 40 10+
10 Cuiab|i 54 38 14 12 12 43 44 1-
11 Atl. Goianiense 52 38 13 13 12 39 38 1+
12 Oper|irio 48 38 12 12 14 40 44 4-
13 Vila Nova 47 38 11 14 13 40 44 4-
14 Am|-rica Mineiro 46 38 12 10 16 41 44 3-
15 Athletic Club 44 38 12 8 18 43 53 10-
16 Botafogo-SP 42 38 10 12 16 32 52 20- ---------------------------------------------
17 Ferrovi|iria 40 38 8 16 14 43 52 9- Relegated to Serie C
18 Amazonas 36 38 8 12 18 38 55 17- Relegated to Serie C
19 Volta Redonda 36 38 8 12 18 26 43 17- Relegated to Serie C
20 Paysandu 28 38 5 13 20 36 52 16- Relegated to Serie C
From the lower divisions: Ponte Preta wins its first ever championship, taking home the Serie C trophy and immediately bouncing back to the
second level. Londrina also returns, a couple of seasons after going
down. A good season for Sport's rivals N|iutico and Santa Cruz, both
having earned promotions to Series B and C respectively, while Sport themselves floundered in Serie A. Maranh|uo also earns promotion to Serie
C, which they last played in 2006, when it was still the bottom
division. S|uo Bernardo (to Serie B), Inter de Limeira and Barra (to
Serie C) complete the promoted sides. Going the other way, CSA, ABC,
Retr|| (bouncing back down immediately after coming up last season) and Tombense.
Divisional movements:
A to B:
B to A: Coritiba, Athletico Paranaense, Chapecoense, Remo
B to C: Ferrovi|iria, Amazonas, Volta Redonda, Paysandu
C to B: Ponte Preta, Londrina, N|iutico, S|uo Bernardo
C to D: CSA, ABC, Retr||, Tombense
D to C: Barra, Santa Cruz, Internacional de Limeira, Maranh|uo
Geographical spread:
Series A, B and C will have 20 clubs each in 2026, while Serie D will be expanded from 64 to 96 teams. I'll only do the top three divisions here,
since I don't know yet who will participate in Serie D 2026 (the last
spots are still open and some seem to be dependent on CBF ranking).
These 60 teams come from 40 different cities spread over 17 states, with
a total estimated population of 49.6 million people.
Serie A will have clubs from 11 different cities from 8 states, total estimated population of about 30.2 million people. Serie B clubs come
from 16 cities in 10 states, with a represented population of 14.8
million. And Serie C will travel to 20 cities in 12 states, total
estimated population of 15 million people.
Palmar|-s:
Adjusting the numbers to count Flamengo's league title, here is what the distribution of national titles now looks like, adopting CBF's criteria:
"leagues" = Campeonato Brasileiro (1971-2024) + Ta|oa Brasil (1959-1968)
+ Torneio RGP (1967-1970)
"cups" = Copa do Brasil (1989-2024)
1 Palmeiras 16 (12 leagues, 4 cups)
2 Flamengo 13 (8 leagues, 5 cups)
3 Corinthians 10 (7 leagues, 3 cups)
Cruzeiro 10 (4 leagues, 6 cups)
5 Santos 9 (8 leagues, 1 cup)
6 S|uo Paulo 7 (6 leagues, 1 cup)
Gr|-mio 7 (2 leagues, 5 cups)
8 Fluminense 5 (4 leagues, 1 cup)
Vasco da Gama 5 (4 leagues, 1 cup)
10 Internacional 4 (3 leagues, 1 cup)
Atl|-tico Mineiro 4 (2 leagues, 2 cups)
11 Botafogo 3 (3 leagues)
12 Bahia 2 (2 leagues)
Sport Recife 2 (1 league, 1 cup)
12 Ath. Paranaense 2 (1 league, 1 cup)
16 Coritiba 1 (1 league)
Guarani 1 (1 league)
Crici||ma 1 (1 cup)
Juventude 1 (1 cup)
Santo Andr|- 1 (1 cup)
Paulista 1 (1 cup)
Distribution by city:
1 S|uo Paulo 33 (3 clubs, 25 leagues, 8 cups)
2 Rio de Janeiro 26 (4 clubs, 19 leagues, 7 cups)
3 Belo Horizonte 14 (2 clubs, 6 leagues, 8 cups)
4 Porto Alegre 11 (2 clubs, 5 leagues, 6 cups)
5 Santos 9 (1 club, 8 leagues, 1 cup)
6 Curitiba 3 (2 clubs, 2 leagues, 1 cup)
7 Salvador 2 (1 club, 2 leagues)
Recife 2 (1 club, 1 league, 1 cup)
9 Campinas 1 (1 club, 1 league)
Santo Andr|- 1 (1 club, 1 cup)
Jundia|! 1 (1 club, 1 cup)
Caxias do Sul 1 (1 club, 1 cup)
Crici||ma 1 (1 club, 1 cup)
Distribution by state:
1 S|uo Paulo 45 (7 clubs, 34 leagues, 11 cups)
2 Rio de Janeiro 26 (4 clubs, 19 leagues, 7 cups)
3 Minas Gerais 14 (2 clubs, 6 leagues, 8 cups)
Rio Grande do Sul 12 (3 clubs, 5 leagues, 7 cups)
5 Paran|i 3 (2 clubs, 2 leagues, 1 cup)
6 Bahia 2 (1 club, 2 leagues)
Pernambuco 2 (1 club, 1 league, 1 cup)
8 Santa Catarina 1 (1 club, 1 cup)
And that's almost it, folks, as the cup is yet to be played out. Winners
face Flamengo in Supercopa do Brasil, to be played on January 24th,
2026, on a venue yet to be determined. Flamengo, meanwhile, is off to
the Intercontinental Cup, where they face Cruz Azul on December 10th. If
they advance they play Pyramids and, if they win that one, it'll be
Paris Saint-Germain.
Best regards,
Ll|-o
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