CR Vasco da Gama facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Vasco da Gama

Full name	Club de Regatas Vasco da Gama
Nickname(s)	Cruzmaltino (from Maltese Cross) Gigante da Colina (Giant of the Hill) Camisas Negras (Black Shirts) O Legítimo Clube do Povo (The Authentic People's Club) Vascaínos or Cruzmaltinos (supporters)
Founded	21 August 1898; 126 years ago (1898-08-21)
Stadium	São Januário Maracanã
Ground Capacity	21,880 78,838
SAF owner	777 Partners (70%) Club de Regatas Vasco da Gama (30%)
President	Pedrinho
Head coach	Ramón Díaz
League	Campeonato Brasileiro Série A Campeonato Carioca
2022 2022	Série B, 4th of 20 (promoted) Carioca, 3rd of 12
Home colors Away colors Third colors

Club de Regatas Vasco da Gama (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈklubi dʒi ʁeˈɡatɐz ˈvasku dɐ ˈɡɐ̃mɐ]; English: Vasco da Gama Club of Rowing), commonly referred to as Vasco da Gama or simply Vasco, is a sports club based in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Although originally a rowing club and then a multi-sport club, Vasco is mostly known for its men's football team, which currently competes in the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, the top tier of the Brazilian football league system, and in the Campeonato Carioca, the state of Rio de Janeiro's premier state league.

Named after Vasco da Gama 400 years after his European–Asian sea route in 1498, the club was founded in 1898 as a rowing club by Brazilian workers, Portuguese Brazilians and newly arrived Portuguese immigrants. Vasco created its football department in 1915, with professionalism officially adopted in 1933 – pioneer in Brazil. In addition to its main departments of football and rowing, Vasco has other sports departments since the 1910s. Its youth academy, which has brought up international footballers such as Romário, Philippe Coutinho, Hilderaldo Bellini, Roberto, and Edmundo, is well known for its socio-educational methodology.

Due to its history of diversity and mobilization, most notably exemplified by the Resposta Histórica (Historical Response) document and the crowdfunding to build the São Januário stadium in the 1920s, Vasco became a symbol of anti-racism and multiculturalism, inspiring the club's motto of "Respeito, igualdade, inclusão" (Respect, equality, inclusion). However, Vasco's history has been a subject of controversy due to the club's own complex political and administrative disputes, which continues to reflect in the instability of the club's results.

At the national level, Vasco da Gama has won four Brasileirão, three Rio–São Paulo and one Copa do Brasil. In international club football, the club has won one Copa Libertadores, one South American Championship of Champions, and one Copa Mercosur. At the state level, the club has also won 24 Carioca. The golden generation of Vasco da Gama, dubbed O Expresso da Vitória (the Victory Express), won five state titles in the eight year span between 1945–1952, and led Vasco to become the first continental club champion ever with the 1948 South American Championship of Champions title. This team, which included Barbosa, Ademir, Friaça, Danilo, Augusto, and Chico, among others, is considered one of the greatest teams of its generation and of all time.

With fans worldwide, Vasco da Gama is one of the most widely supported clubs in Brazil, the Rio de Janeiro state and the Americas. Vasco plays its home matches in São Januário stadium since its inauguration in 1927. Occasionally, the club has also played their home matches in Maracanã stadium since its inauguration in 1950. Vasco holds long-standings rivalries with Flamengo, Fluminense and Botafogo. Originally from rowing in the 1900s and extending to football in the 1920s as O Clássico dos Milhões (the Derby of Millions), the Vasco–Flamengo rivalry is considered of the main rivalries of Brazilian sports and one of the most prominent football rivalries in the world.

History

Foundation

In the late 19th century, rowing was the most important sport in Rio de Janeiro. At this time, four young men – Henrique Ferreira Monteiro, Luís Antônio Rodrigues, José Alexandre d'Avelar Rodrigues and Manuel Teixeira de Souza Júnior – who did not want to travel to Niterói to row with the boats of Gragoatá Club, decided to found a rowing club.

On 21 August 1898, in a room of the Sons of Talma Dramatic Society, 62 members (mostly Portuguese immigrants) formed Club de Regatas Vasco da Gama (Vasco da Gama Rowing Club). Inspired by the celebrations of the 4th centenary of the first sail from Europe to India, the founders named the club in honor of Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama. The club's colors were chosen as black and white; black was chosen as a representation of the unknown seas Vasco da Gama salied through, and white represented his victorious route. The first kit used these colors in a half and half combination, with the Order of Christ Cross in the center symbolizing the Christian faith just like in the sails of Gama's São Gabriel carrack. The emblem was created shortly after too; it was round with a sailboat bearing the Cross pattée.

On 26 November 1915, Vasco and Lusitania Sport Clube, another sports club founded by the local Portuguese community in Brazil and named after Lusitania which is often used as an alternative name for Portugal itself, merged, resulting in the creation of Vasco's footballing department. Beginning in the lower leagues, the club's first match was played on 3 May 1916; a 10–1 loss to Paladino FC.

1920s: Overcoming social & class inequality

During the 1920s, football in Brazil was a sport for the elites, and Vasco da Gama's racially diverse squad did not appease them. Some players were required to take a literacy exam before putting on their boots.

Vasco won its first top-division title with the 1923 Campeonato Carioca, becoming champion with a team including whites, blacks and "mulatto" players of different social classes.

In 1924, Vasco da Gama was pressured by the Metropolitan League to ban some players who were not considered adequate to play in the aristocratic league, notably because they were black or mulato and/or poor. After Vasco refused to comply with such a ban, the other big teams, including Fluminense, Flamengo and Botafogo created the Metropolitan Athletic Association and prohibited Vasco from participating unless it complied with their racist demands.

As a result, the former President of Vasco, José Augusto Prestes, responded with a letter that became known as the Historic Response (Resposta Histórica), which revolutionized the practice of sports in Brazil. After a few years, the racism barriers fell, and Vasco became known as "Clube de todas as raças" (Club of all races). The club had led the move toward a more inclusive football culture, forward-thinking not employed by leaders from other Rio-based clubs like Fluminense, Flamengo and Botafogo.

Even though the club was not the first to field black players, it was the first one to win a league with them, which led to an outcry to ban "blue-collar workers" from playing in the league—a move that in practice meant barring blacks from playing.

In 1925, Vasco was readmitted into the "elite" league, with its black and mulatto players. By 1933, when football became professional in Brazil, most of the big clubs had black players.

On 21 April 1927, Vasco's Stadium was inaugurated with a match against Santos. Santos won the match 5–3. On 26 April 1931, Vasco had a historic 7–0 victory over rivals Flamengo; this is the largest victory margin between the two clubs.

Expresso da Vitória (1944–53)

Between 1944 and 1953, the club was nicknamed Expresso da Vitória (Victory Express), as Vasco won several competitions in that period, such as the Rio de Janeiro championship in 1945, 1947, 1949, 1950, and 1952, and the South American Club Championship, the world's first ever continental club tournament, in 1948. In 1953, Vasco da Gama won its first intercontinental trophy, the Torneio Intercontinental Octogonal Rivadavia Correa Meyer. Players such as Ademir de Menezes, Moacyr Barbosa, Bellini and Ipojucan starred in Vasco's colors during that period.

The Super-Superchampions Generation (1956–59)

In 1956, the Vascaínos became Rio de Janeiro champions and Little World Cup runner-up, losing the title to Di Stefano's Real Madrid, which Vasco would beat in a friendly shortly after the end of the tournament, becoming the first non-European club to defeat a European Champion. In 1957, this generation toured Europe and won 10 consecutive matches, including yet another victory against European champion Real Madrid (4–3) on 14 June, which sealed the Paris Tournament title - this match was the first ever, at a competitive level, between two continental champions. It also was the only international tournament Real didn't win between 1955 and 1960. Vasco would also beat Athletic Bilbao (champion of the Spanish League and Cup in the previous year) by winning the traditional Teresa Herrera Trophy with a 4–2 scoreline, and Barcelona (champion of the Spanish Cup a week earlier) inside Les Corts, with a historic scoreline of 2–7, the second worst defeat ever suffered at home by the Catalan team, and largest in international matches. Benfica (Portuguese champion and Latin Cup runner-up) was also a victim of Vasco on this tour, losing to the Brazilian club with another impressive result, 5–2, in Lisbon on 30 June 1957.

In early 1958, just before the World Cup, Vasco won the Rio-São Paulo Tournament, the most important championship in Brazil at the time, which in this edition included teams such as Santos of Pelé, Botafogo of Garrincha, Flamengo of Zagallo and Fluminense of Telê Santana. After this memorable title, three Vasco players had important parts in the campaign for the first Brazil World Cup title: Vavá (who scored five goals in the World Cup, including two in the final) and defenders Orlando and Bellini (the best defending pair of the tournament, Bellini was still the Brazilian captain). After the World Cup, the team then won the greatest Carioca Championship of all time. In an epic competition against Flamengo of Zagallo and Botafogo of Garrincha and Nilton Santos (it needed two extra tiebreaker tournaments to decide the champion), Vasco became the carioca "super-superchampion" of 1958.

In 1959, the team went on to beat great European teams like Italian champion Milan and Atletico de Madrid (European Cup semi-finalist on that year) in the Metropolitano. Vasco was also Rio-São Tournament runner-up this year, only behind Santos of Pelé. Still in 1959, five Vasco players were called up for the 1959 Copa America: Paulinho, Orlando, Bellini, Coronel (defenders) and Almir (striker). Brazil would end the tournament unbeaten (four wins and two draws) with the four aforementioned Vasco players almost always being included in the starting eleven. Despite the good campaign, Argentina would keep the title, after ending the tournament with an extra victory. Vasco, together with Botafogo, was the club that gave the most players to the Brazil national team in that period. Most football lovers think this Vasco was one of the best clubs of the world at the time, and maybe the best in 1957–58.

1970s: First League Title

In the 1965 Campeonato Brasileiro, Vasco da Gama reached the league's final and were very close to winning its first league title, but lost to Pele's Santos 1–6 on aggregate. In 1970, under star players Roberto Dinamite and Edgardo Andrada, Vasco won the regional title for the first time in 12 years. In 1974, they won their first league title, with Roberto Dinamite as the top scorer. In addition, they became the first team from Rio to win the league. Cruzeiro and Vasco had ended the season with the same number of points, meaning that a second match had to be played; Vasco later beat Cruzeiro 2–1 and won the title.

1997–2000: Second Golden era

After winning the Campeonato Brasileiro in 1997, beating Palmeiras in the final, Vasco started its Projeto Tóquio, and invested US$10 million to win the 1998 Copa Libertadores. Vasco da Gama won the Copa Libertadores in its Centenary Year, beating Barcelona of Ecuador in the finals 4–1 on aggregate, and 50 years after winning its first South American trophy (South American Championship of Champions).

By winning the Copa Libertadores title, Vasco da Gama faced the 1997–98 UEFA Champions League winners Real Madrid at the 1998 Intercontinental Cup, in Tokyo, Japan, losing 2–1.

As a result of their Copa Libertadores title two years prior, Vasco entered the inaugural 2000 FIFA Club World Championship held in Brazil. They beat Manchester United of England, Necaxa of Mexico, and South Melbourne of Australia in the group stage to reach the final. It finished 0–0 after extra time in an all-Brazilian clash with Corinthians, but Vasco lost 3–4 in the penalty shootout.

Also in 2000, Vasco won the Copa Mercosur against Palmeiras in a historic match on 20 December 2000. Typically the finals are played over two legs, but a third match would be needed if a different team won each leg. This ended up being the case; Vasco had won the first leg 2–0, but Palmeiras won the second leg 1–0 six days later. Trailing 3–0 at the end of first-half, with Palmeiras scoring 2 goals in less than a minute, Vasco managed to score 3 goals to level the match at 3–3 with five minutes remaining, while playing with 10 men after Júnior Baiano got a red card in the 77th minute. In the 93rd minute, Romário scored a decisive goal and Vasco won the match 4–3. The match is still considered one of the best games in Brazilian history.

Vasco won the Copa João Havelange in 2000. Seen as a controversial competition organized by Clube dos 13 rather than CBF, Vasco played São Caetano in the finals. The club drew the first game 1–1 at Estádio Palestra Itália, and the second game was called off by Rio de Janeiro State Governor Anthony Garotinho in the first half because a fence collapsed at São Januário Stadium, which resulted in the injuries of many fans. Despite the disaster, Vasco won the rescheduled second leg 3–1 at the Maracana to lift the trophy.

2001–2008: Decline

In the 2001 Copa Libertadores, Vasco became the first team to win all six group games, which included big victories (0–3 and 4–1), against Colombian champions América de Cali. In the round of 16, the club eliminated Deportes Concepción, but then suffered a 4–0 aggregate loss against eventual champions Boca Juniors, which was considered a disappointing elimination despite the high hopes that were set after their perfect group stage run.

Shortly after the 2001 season, the club experienced a sharp decline, finishing 15th in 2002 and narrowly avoiding relegation in 2003 and 2004, although in 2005 they qualified for the 2006 Copa Sudamericana with a 12th-placed finish. Vasco's 2006 season was decent, finishing sixth in the league and gaining qualification for the following years Sudamericana, as well as reaching the Copa do Brasil final for the first time, losing to Flamengo.

2007 Vasco shirt

2008: First ever Relegation

The team finished the 2008 Série A in a disastrous 18th place and was relegated to the second division for the first time since its foundation after a 0–2 home loss against EC Vitória. Until then, it had been one of only six clubs to have never been relegated from the first division, along with Cruzeiro, Flamengo, Santos and São Paulo. (The last two didn't participate in the 1979 Brazilian Championship, in order to avoid conflicts with Paulista Championship schedule.)

Vasco immediately secured their return to Serie A, sealing promotion to the 2010 Série A on 7 November 2009 with a 2–1 victory over Juventude in front of a Serie B-record 81,000 fans at Maracanã, and finishing as Serie B champions as well.

2010–2012: Copa do Brasil title, Return to Copa Libertadores

In the 2010 league season, their first season back in the top flight since relegation, Vasco finished in 11th place, and qualified for the 2011 Copa Sudamericana. In the 2010 Copa do Brasil, the team reached the quarterfinals, being eliminated by Vitoria on away goals.

2011: The Redemption Year

Vasco beat Coritiba on away goals in the 2011 Copa do Brasil finals, and lifted the trophy for the first time in the club's history. In the Série A, Vasco enjoyed an excellent campaign, finishing only 2 points behind Corinthians. A win on the last matchday would've given them the title, as Corinthians drew their match, but Flamengo held Vasco to a draw. The club also ended the year as semifinalists in the Copa Sudamericana, a competition that saw the club defeat Palmeiras, Aurora and Universitario in historic fashion before being eliminated by eventual champion Universidad de Chile on away goals. The season was dubbed as "Vasco's Redemption Year", with many lauding Vasco as one of Brazilian football's elite teams once again.

2012: Return to Copa Libertadores

Vasco's played their first final of 2012 in the Taca Guanabara, losing 1–3 to Fluminense after eliminating Flamengo in the semifinals. Two months later, they were playing a final again, this time losing to Botafogo in the Taca Rio, eliminating Flamengo in the semifinals again.

Vasco qualified for the 2012 Copa Libertadores as Brazilian Cup champion, marking a return to the top South American competition after 12 years. In the group stage, Vasco finished second tied with Libertad on points and only losing once. Vasco beat Lanús on penalties in the round of 16, to set a quarterfinal matchup with Corinthians, who eliminated Vasco 1–0 with an 88th-minute goal by Paulinho. In the Brazilian Championship, the team set the record for 54 consecutive rounds in the top 4 (continuing from the 2011 and 2012 seasons), although they ultimately finished in fifth and missed out on qualifying for the Libertadores the following year due to poor form, losing six of their last ten games.

2013–present

2013: Second-ever Relegation

After a good season in 2012, Vasco started their 2013 poorly and were hampered by financial issues. In the Taca Rio, the club had a terrible campaign and finished seventh of eight in the table. By the end of the year, the club had been relegated for the second time in 5 years and just the second time in their history, which was secured with a 5–1 defeat to Atletico Paranaense on the final matchday. In the Copa do Brasil the team entered in the round of 16, beating Nacional and then being eliminated by Goiás on away goals, despite winning the second leg 3–2.

After one season in the Série B during 2014, the team gained promotion, and in May 2015, won the Campeonato Carioca after a 12-year drought. However, they were relegated again in the 2015 edition, placing eighteenth. In 2016, Vasco became back-to-back Carioca champions, and had a 34 match unbeaten streak, their longest in official games. Once again, they were promoted after one season in the B-level league, and in the 2020 season they were relegated for the fourth time and, for the first time, spent two consecutive seasons in the second division as they failed to be promoted during the 2021 season, placing tenth.

2022: 777 Partners

On 22 February 2022 it was announced that 777 Partners, a Miami-based private investment firm founded by Steven W. Pasko and Josh Wander, bought a controlling stake in Vasco da Gama. According to the terms of the deal, 777 Partners acquired a 70% stake in the club which was valued at approximately $330 million.

On 6 November 2022, Vasco sealed their return to Série A, after a two-year absence.

Identity

Royal Patronage

Since 2017, Vasco has been able to use the word Royal before its name, "Real Club de Regatas Vasco da Gama", through the Royal Decree of the Head of the Portuguese Royal House, Duarte Pio, Duke of Bragança, which renewed and conferred the Royal Patronage on Vasco da Gama. The royal title would be granted to the club in 1908, in its first decade of existence, on the occasion of the visit of the King Carlos I to Brazil, who had already decided to renew and confer the title of "Royal Society", which Vasco had already enjoyed during the period when Luís I was King of Portugal, but was prevented from doing so by the regicide of February 1, 1908.

Logo

Vasco's first shield was created in 1898. The current shield with the diagonal sash was not adopted until the 1920s. The current shield bears a black background, with a white diagonal sash going left to right, that has a sailboat in the center, and letters CR and VG being directly left and below the sailboat respectively.

In 1980, an outline was added to the logo. The logo has gone through various changes throughout the years, but still resembles the main layout used in 1920. The current logo, adopted in 2021, curved the sails of the sailboat and the flag on top, emphasized the waves, added a front spine to the vsailboat, and removed the rectangles that had been present in the 2015 logo.

Given the 2017 Royal Patronage, the shied logo can be topped by the Portuguese royal heraldic crown.

Kit evolution

Vasco da Gama's kit evolution

Vasco da Gama is one of the oldest Brazilian clubs and has had several different kits in its history. Vasco da Gama's first kit, used in rowing, was created in 1898, and was primarily black, with a left white diagonal sash.

Vasco's first football kit, created in 1916, was completely black, and was easily identified because of the presence of a white tie and a belt. In 1929, the tie and the belt were removed. However, the kit remained all-black. In the 1930s, the home kit's color was changed again; it became black with a white right diagonal sash.

In 1945, the kit's color was changed to white, and a black diagonal sash was introduced. The sash was introduced because the club's manager at the time, Uruguayan Ondino Viera liked the sash used in his previous club's kit, River Plate of Argentina, and adopted this pattern in Vasco's away kit. So, both kits had a right-to-left diagonal sash.

In the 1970s the Order of Christ Cross was replaced with the Cross patteé, which is still used today.

In 1988, the sash located on the back of the shirt was removed. At the beginning of the 90s, stars representing the club's titles began to be used above the logo, and numbers were black and white instead of red. In 1996, the sash located on the back was returned. This kit became very similar to the 1945 one, with the exception of the addition of a thin red line that outlines the sash.

Vasco currently has three kits. The home shirt's main color is black with a white sash. The short and the socks are black. The away kit is similar to the home kit, but the main color is white, the sash is black, and the shorts and socks are white. In 2009–10 the third kit was all white, with a red "cross of the Knights Templar". In 2010, the away kit changed to black in honor of 1923's team, which gave up playing for having black players, as they were not allowed to play with white players at that time.

From July 2009, after breaking the partnership with Champs, to 2013, the official jerseys were produced by Penalty. Since 2020, the kits are made by Kappa (brand).

Anthems

Vasco's official anthem was composed in 1918, by Joaquim Barros Ferreira da Silva, and it was the club's first anthem. There is another official anthem, created in the 1930s, called "Meu Pavilhão" (meaning My Pavilion), whose lyrics were composed by João de Freitas and music by Hernani Correia. This anthem replaced the previous one. The club's most popular anthem, however, is an unofficial anthem composed by Lamartine Babo in 1942.

Stadium

View of Sao Januário in 2020

Vasco da Gama's stadium is Estádio São Januário, inaugurated in 1927, with a maximum capacity of 35,000 people. The National Championship games have a maximum capacity of 21,880 people, for security reasons.

Occasionally, Vasco uses the Maracanã for rivalry matches or international matches. It has a capacity for 78,000 people.

Supporters

According to census and polls, Vasco da Gama is the second most supported club in Rio de Janeiro state, and varies between the third and fifth most supported club in Brazil, with an estimate of more than 15 million supporters in the country. Vasco fans are very diverse stretching across social class lines, however the core of most Vasco support lies within the working class of the Northern Zone of Rio de Janeiro and Rio outskirt cities like Niterói. Vasco da Gama have significant support in other regions in Brazil, notably the Northeastern and North regions as well as strongholds in southern Minas Gerais, Espirito Santo and in Santa Catarina. Vasco also have a huge support in Distrito Federal; a study conducted by TV Globo concluded that Vasco were the second-most supported team in the city, behind Flamengo. As of 29 June 2022, the club has 60,326 sócios in its membership program, having its peak in December 2019 with more than 178,000 memberships. In April 2023, CNN carried out a survey that revealed that Vasco is the team with the most fans considered "fanatics" in the Southeast Region clubs and among the G-12 (Big Twelve), in addition to being the third in the country.

Main torcidas organizadas

Notable or public supporters

Honours

Other tournaments

• Tournoi de Paris: 1957
• Teresa Herrera Trophy: 1957
• Trofeo Ciudad de Sevilla: 1979
• Festa d'Elx Trophy: 1979
• Colombino Trophy: 1980
• Ramón de Carranza Trophy (3): 1987, 1988, 1989
• Ciutat de Barcelona Trophy: 1993
• Trofeo Ciudad de Zaragoza: 1993
• City of Palma de Mallorca Trophy: 1995
• Los Angeles Golden Cup: 1987
• Trofeo Bortolotti: 1997

Statistics

Explanation:

	Campeonato Brasileiro Série A
	Campeonato Brasileiro Série B
	Promoted
	Relegated

Campeonato Brasileiro Year 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 Position 12th 7th 14th 1st 19th 12th 19th 4th 2nd Year 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 Position 8th 5th 10th 6th 2nd 11th 15th 10th 5th 1st Year 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 Position 14th 11th 3rd 15th 12th 20th 18th 1st 10th 7th Year 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 Position 1st 11th 15th 17th 16th 12th 6th 10th 18th 1st Year 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 Position 11th 2nd 5th 18th 3rd 18th 3rd 7th 16th 12th Year 2020 2021 2022 2023 Position 17th 10th 4th 15th Copa Rio Internacional Year 1951 1952 1953 Position 3rd — 1st Tournament of Paris Year 1957 1959 1966 1977 1981 1989 Position 1st 3rd 4th 4th 3rd 3rd Intercontinental Cup Year 1998 Position 2nd FIFA Club World Cup Year 2000 Position 2nd Taça Brasil/Taça de Prata Year 1959 1965 1967 1968 1969 1970 Position 4th 2nd 12th 3rd 17th 17th

Copa do Brasil Year 1989 Position 12th Year 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 Position — 10th 12th 3rd 3rd 4th 16th 14th 4th 10th Year 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 Position 13th — 8th 8th 19th 10th 2nd 17th 3rd 3rd Year 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 Position 6th 1st — 5th 11th 6th 12th 23rd 14th 17th Copa Libertadores Year 1975 1980 1985 1990 1998 1999 2001 2012 2018 Position 16th 8th 18th 6th 1st 16th 6th 7th 26th South American Championship of Champions Year 1948 Position 1st

Players

First team squad

No. Position Player 1 GK Léo Jardim 2 DF José Luis Rodríguez 3 DF Léo (vice-captain) 4 DF Maicon 5 MF Patrick de Lucca 6 DF Lucas Piton 7 FW David (on loan from Internacional) 8 MF Jair 9 FW Clayton 10 MF Dimitri Payet (3rd captain) 12 DF Victor Luis 13 GK Keiller (on loan from Internacional) 16 FW Erick Marcus 17 DF Gary Medel (captain) 18 MF Paulinho

No. Position Player 20 MF Juan Sforza 21 MF Bruno Praxedes (on loan from Red Bull Bragantino) 23 MF Zé Gabriel 24 GK Halls 27 MF Pablo Galdames 28 FW Adson 31 FW Rossi 32 DF Robert Rojas (on loan from River Plate) 37 GK Pablo 38 DF João Victor 70 FW Serginho 77 FW Rayan 85 MF Mateus Carvalho 96 DF Paulo Henrique 99 FW Pablo Vegetti

Youth academy

No. Position Player 58 MF Lucas Eduardo 66 DF Leandrinho DF Lyncon

No. Position Player DF Paulinho FW Gabriel

Other players

No. Position Player DF Matheus Julião MF Marlon Santos MF Rodrigo

Out on loan

No. Position Player 14 FW Luca Orellano (on loan at Cincinnati until 31 December 2024) 15 FW Figueiredo (on loan at Coritiba until 30 November 2024) 19 MF Matías Galarza (on loan at Talleres until 31 December 2024) 22 DF Manuel Capasso (on loan at Olimpia until 31 December 2024) 35 DF Miranda (on loan at Amazonas until 30 June 2024) 40 DF Ulisses (on loan at Nacional da Madeira until 30 June 2024) 44 DF Zé Vitor (on loan at Volta Redonda until 30 November 2024)

No. Position Player 45 DF Riquelme (on loan at Sport Recife until 30 November 2024) 55 GK Alexander (on loan at Ypiranga until 30 November 2024) 57 GK Cadu Neves (on loan at Bangu until 8 April 2024) 88 MF Cauan Barros (on loan at Amazonas until 30 November 2024) 90 FW Paixão (on loan at América de Natal until 30 November 2024) MF Matheus Nunes (on loan at Santa Clara until 30 June 2024) FW Lucas Oliveira (on loan at ABC until 30 November 2024)

Personnel

Technical staff

Position	Name	Nationality
Head coach	Ramón Díaz	Argentinian
Assistant coach	Emiliano Díaz	Argentinian
	Juan Romanazzi	Argentinian
	Celso Martins	Brazilian
Fitness coach	Diego Pereira	Brazilian
	Marcelo Arouca	Brazilian
Goalkeeping coach	Daniel Crizel	Brazilian
	Mateus Famer	Brazilian
	José Alberto	Brazilian

Management staff

Position	Name	Nationality
Chairman	Pedrinho	Brazilian
SAF's CEO	Lúcio Barbosa	Brazilian
Football director	Alexandre Mattos	Brazilian
Football supervisor	Rodrigo Pelaipe	Brazilian
Academy manager	Rodrigo Dias	Brazilian

Former head coaches

Top scorers

Source:

Rank	Player	Years	Goals
1.	Roberto Dinamite	1971–79, 1980–89, 1991–93	702
2.	Romário	1985–88, 2000–02, 2005–06, 2007–08	326
3.	Ademir Menezes	1942–45, 1948–56	301
4.	Pinga	1953–61	250
5.	Russinho	1924–34	225
6.	Ipojucan	1944–54	225
7.	Vavá	1952–58	191
8.	Sabará	1952–64	165
9.	Lelé	1943–48	147
10.	Valdir Bigode	1992–94, 2002–04	143
11.	Edmundo	1992, 1996–97, 1999–00, 2003, 2008	138

Rivalries

Vasco's biggest rivalry is against Flamengo, called the Clássico dos Milhões (Millions' Derby), usually played at the Maracanã and whose name comes from the fact that Flamengo and Vasco have the largest fanbases in the Rio de Janeiro and two of the 5 largest of Brazil. The teams first met in 1922, with Flamengo winning 1–0. This rivalry has the highest average attendance in the Serie A.

Vasco holds other strong local rivalry with Fluminense, whose matches are known as Clássico dos Gigantes (Giants Derby). The derby gets its name because of the "giant" matches between the two, mainly the finals of the 1984 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, which Flumiense won, and the 1985 Copa Libertadores group stage matches, which ended in two draws. The 1984 final had an attendance of 128,781 people, one of the largest in the history of Brazilian football.

The Clássico da Amizade (Friendship Derby) is the rivlary between Vasco and Botafogo, that gets its name due to the "mild" rivalry both have, due to Vasco having a large margin of victories over Botafogo and there being few decisive matches between them. Nevertheless, Botafogo is one of Vasco's cross-city rivals and their matches usually draw crowds. In 2021, Botafogo beat Vasco 4–0 in the Serie B, virtually eliminating any possibility of promotion for Vasco, while Botafogo put themselves closer to promotion. The first match between the two clubs was in 1923, a 3–1 victory for Vasco.

The matches between Vasco and America are known as Clássico da Paz (Peace Derby). During the 20th century America was one of the top clubs in Rio, but towards the turn of the 21st century it declined in performance. On 12 February 2011, Vasco thrashed America 9–0, one of the worst defeats of any derby.

Legacy

Due to Vasco's tradition, several clubs are named after it, including Associação Desportiva Vasco da Gama, of Acre state, founded in 1952, Vasco Esporte Clube, of Sergipe state, founded in 1931, Esporte Clube Vasco da Gama, of Americana, São Paulo state, founded in 1958, Vasco Sports Club, which is an Indian football club founded in 1951, and CR Vasco da Gama Football Club, which is a South African football club founded in 1980. Tomazinho Futebol Clube, from São João de Meriti, Rio de Janeiro state, founded in 1930, has a logo strongly inspired by Vasco's logo, and share the same colors.

Other sports

Although best known as a football, rowing and swimming club, Vasco da Gama is actually a comprehensive sports club. Its basketball section, CR Vasco da Gama Basquete (three times Brazilian Champion and four times South-American Champion) produced former NBA player Nenê. The club is also the first Brazilian club to play against an NBA team, against San Antonio Spurs, in 1999, in the McDonald's Championship final. Its rowing team is one of the best of Brazil and of the continent, which swimmers regularly represent Brazil in international competitions. Vasco da Gama also has a four-times National Champion women's soccer team as well. Vasco's beach soccer team is one of the best in the world, being once World Champion, three times South-American Champion and many times National Champion. In addition to these, Vasco has many other sports with World, South American and Brazilian titles.

See also

In Spanish: Club de Regatas Vasco da Gama para niños