The Rio Copa final between Portuguesa-RJ and America-RJ, won by the Governor Island team, in the North Zone of Rio de Janeiro, last Saturday (20), would go unnoticed by many if it were not for an element as decisive as unusual outside the four lines: a Portuguese pizza.
It all started after the first match, played a week earlier. A America fans, a team chaired by former striker and current Senator Romário, still euphoric by the 1-0 win, mocking their rival with the Portuguese choir is pizza. The rival did not digest the mockery well and plotted a tasty change.
A week later, the president of the Portuguese carioca, Marcelo Barros, entered the locker room with a box of pizza in his hands to transform the provocation into motivation. The heated speech scene went viral on social networks.
“Those who filmed the lecture was an intern in our communication department, the advisor was not. I didn’t know, it was nothing agreed. I said a lot of bad words, could have avoided, but the moment asked for something more to raise the morale of the group of players,” Barros tells Sheet.
“We always eat pizzas later, because it is a good source of carbohydrates to replenish the energy of athletes, but I told my partner who produces: ‘This time I want before’. He asked several times if he really needed, said yes,” the top hat, who even used metaphors like “kneading the opponent” while kneading a piece of pizza.
Interestingly, the pizza of discord – Portuguese sabor – which carries ingredients such as ham, eggs, onions and olive, was born in São Paulo in the 1960s, not in Portugal.
Created in a São Paulo canteen, he was named after the Portuguese immigrants who attended the site and asked to include eggs and other typical items of Portuguese cuisine on the roof.
The operation so that the pizza was in the hands of the leader before the start of the game, at 18h, stirred the supplier’s schedule, which had to adapt the opening hours of the establishment to fulfill the unusual request.
According to Barros, the first decision was marked by provocations. “In the first leg, we were harassed. They shot glasses on athletes and the coaching staff. And during the week there were people connected to America posting a photo eating pizza, cheering teasing … Then I thought: let’s turn it into fuel.”
The tense climate among the teams was also accentuated behind the scenes. The regulation provides for the tournament champion the right to compete in the Brazilian series D of the following year, while the deputy goes to the Brazilian Cup. But a friendly agreement between the associations could change the definition of vacancies.
As both wanted to play Serie D, rivalry only increased. “I spoke to Romário before the first game. He said, in the review, that he wanted Series D as much as I did. So everything gained greater proportion,” he says.
The outcome came on the field. The Portuguese won the decisive match 2-0 at the Luso-Brazilian Stadium, and raised the Rio Cup Cup, with the right celebration: “There are usually 12 pizzas, but I asked three times more after the final already trusting the result. It ended up becoming a rotation for players, commission and cheerleaders.”
For the leader, who presided over the club since 2020 and is the son of João Rêgo, president of honor of the Portuguese, the title has a symbolic weight for the centenary history of the group.
“We are very barbarians, there are 300 thousand residents here on the island. It is the feeling of belonging. The Portuguese carries the flag of the island,” he explains.
At the end of the game, club officials served pizza to players on the lawn, while fans responded to the provocations bringing boxes to the stands.
A principle of confusion was quickly contained after a man, wearing the Portuguese shirt, offering pizza to America’s employees.
This was the fourth title of the Rio Copa for the Portuguese-Champion in 2000, 2016, 2023 and 2025. America-RJ will return to a national competition after 15 years.
