This Saturday (29), begins another edition of the Brazilian Championship.
The competition began to be officially played in 1971. But over time, other tournaments were considered as national championships.
In 2010, the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) recognized the disputes from 1959 (Brazil Cup and Silver Cup) as titles of the Brasileirão.
In 2023, the entity also approved the.
History of the Brazilian Championship
In 2023, the CBF recognized the “1937” Champions Tournament, organized by the Brazilian Football Federation (FBF), as the first national professional championship. Thus, Atletico-MG, champion this year, was recognized as the first champion of the Brasileirão.
After that, the Brazilian Sports Confederation (CBD), current CBF, then responsible for the regulation and regulation of all sports, created the “Brazil Cup” in 1959. The tournament had 16 representatives, all state champions of the previous year.
Santos and Bahia made the final of the tournament, played in the knockout system. Tricolor de Steel was the great champion. The title gave the champion the right to represent Brazil in the Champions Cup of America (current Copa Libertadores de America).
The “Brazil Cup” followed the dispute and, in 1967, the Rio-Sao Paulo Tournament was expanded to teams from all over Brazil and was baptized as “Roberto Gomes Pedrosa Tournament”. The competition was parallel to the Brazil Cup.
The “Robertão” was called a “silver cup” in 1968. With intense media coverage and greater profit potential, the tournament has a greater appeal among clubs.
In 1971, CDB transformed the tournament in the National Club Championship, which would be named in the future as a Brazilian Championship.
Union Cup
The CBF announced in 1987 not being able to maintain a national championship. The idea, due to the serious economic crisis, was to return with the regionalized games. Thirteen clubs rejected the idea created a championship of their own: The Union Cup.
In a joint decision with the CBF, the “Club of 13” organized the green module of the Brazil Cup. The CBF was responsible for the yellow module. The proposal was a quadrangular between champions and vices of each module to define the champion.
Flamengo and Internacional, champion and deputy of the Green Module, refused to face Sport and Guarani, who were considered champions of the yellow module after the final match ended by 11-11 in the penalty shootout and ended.
Without the Clubs of the Green Module, Sport and Guarani returned to the field in February 1988, in a new final, which ended with the Lion of the champion island.
The 1987 championship dispute, however, ended up in court.
In 1994, the court ratified the Sport title, but in 2011 the CBF recognized, through the presidency resolution, the two clubs, both Flamengo and Sport as champions.
Despite this understanding of the CBF, the legal fight continued. In 2017, the STF denied appeal presented by Rubro-Negro and declared Sport as the only 1987 champion.
The first Brazilian Championship
The CBF, intended to reduce the number of clubs participating in the National Tournament, created the Brazilian Championship. To avoid the disappearance of less expressive clubs, it was created a.
The Brazilian Championship adopted, in 1999, a new relegation format. The four clubs that had a lower average points in the 1998 and 1999 championships would fall to Serie B. However, the idea lasted only a year.
In the first phase, a player from Sao Paulo was registered irregularly. The punishment was to nullify the games that striker Sandro Hiroshi participated.
Internacional and Botafogo won the points, and the range was relegated. The situation opened a court case and the CBF was prevented from organizing the tournament.
The “Club of 13” entered the scene again, which in 2000 organized the national championship.
The João Havelange Cup consisted of 116 teams divided into four modules (blue, yellow, green and white). Fluminense and Bahia were invited.
Vasco, from the blue module, beat São Caetano, from the yellow module, in the grand final.
It was from running points
O, end the knockout duels.
The idea was to standardize the system of disputes, being mirrored along the lines of the main tournaments around the world.
Cruzeiro was the first champion in the “Era of Running Points.” Palmeiras and Corinthians are the biggest champions in this system, winning four titles.
Since 2006, the Brasileirão has been disputed with 20 clubs.
All the champions of the Brasileirão
- 1937: Atletico-MG (Champions Cup)
- 1959: Palmeiras (Brazil Cup)
- 1960: Santos (Brazil Cup)
- 1961: Santos (Brazil Cup)
- 1962: Santos (Brazil Cup)
- 1963: Santos (Brazil Cup)
- 1964: Santos (Brazil Cup)
- 1965: Santos (Brazil Cup)
- 1966: Cruzeiro (Brazil Cup)
- 1967: Palmeiras (Brazil and Robertão Cup)
- 1968: Botafogo (Brazil Cup) / Santos (Robertão)
- 1969: Palmeiras (Robertão)
- 1970: Fluminense (Robertão)
- 1971: Atletico-MG (Brazilian Championship)
- 1972: Palmeiras (Brazilian Championship)
- 1973: Palmeiras (Brazilian Championship)
- 1974: Vasco (Brazilian Championship)
- 1975: International (Brazilian Championship)
- 1976: International (Brazilian Championship)
- 1977: São Paulo (Brazilian Championship)
- 1978: Guarani (Brazilian Championship)
- 1979: International (Brazilian Championship)
- 1980: Flamengo (Brazilian Championship)
- 1981: Grêmio (Brazilian Championship)
- 1982: Flamengo (Brazilian Championship)
- 1983: Flamengo (Brazilian Championship)
- 1984: Fluminense (Brazilian Championship)
- 1985: Coritiba (Brazilian Championship)
- 1986: São Paulo (Brazilian Championship)
- 1987: Flamengo and Sport (Brazilian Championship)
- 1988: Bahia (Union Cup)
- 1989: Vasco (Brazilian Championship)
- 1990: Corinthians (Brazilian Championship)
- 1991: São Paulo (Brazilian Championship)
- 1992: Flamengo (Brazilian Championship)
- 1993: Palmeiras (Brazilian Championship)
- 1994: Palmeiras (Brazilian Championship)
- 1995: Botafogo (Brazilian Championship)
- 1996: Grêmio (Brazilian Championship)
- 1997: Vasco (Brazilian Championship)
- 1998: Corinthians (Brazilian Championship)
- 1999: Corinthians (Brazilian Championship)
- 2000: Vasco (João Havelange Cup)
- 2001: Athletico-PR (Brazilian Championship)
- 2002: Santos (Brazilian Championship)
- 2003: Cruzeiro (Brazilian Championship)
- 2004: Santos (Brazilian Championship)
- 2005: Corinthians (Brazilian Championship)
- 2006: São Paulo (Brazilian Championship)
- 2007: São Paulo (Brazilian Championship)
- 2008: São Paulo (Brazilian Championship)
- 2009: Flamengo (Brazilian Championship)
- 2010: Fluminense (Brazilian Championship)
- 2011: Corinthians (Brazilian Championship)
- 2012: Fluminense (Brazilian Championship)
- 2013: Cruzeiro (Brazilian Championship)
- 2014: Cruzeiro (Brazilian Championship)
- 2015: Corinthians (Brazilian Championship)
- 2016: Palmeiras (Brazilian Championship)
- 2017: Corinthians (Brazilian Championship)
- 2018: Palmeiras (Brazilian Championship)
- 2019: Flamengo (Brazilian Championship)
- 2020: Flamengo (Brazilian Championship)
- 2021: Atletico (Brazilian Championship)
- 2022: Palmeiras (Brazilian Championship)
- 2023: Palmeiras (Brazilian Championship)
- 2024: Botafogo (Brazilian Championship)
