Copa do Brasil facts for kids
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| Founded | 1989 |
|---|---|
| Region | Brazil |
| Number of teams | 92 |
| Qualifier for | Copa Libertadores Supercopa do Brasil |
| Current champions | São Paulo (1st title) |
| Most successful club(s) | Cruzeiro (6 titles) |
| Television broadcasters | Domestic Rede Globo SporTV Premiere Amazon Prime Video SBT International OneFootball |
The Copa do Brasil (which means Brazil Cup in English) is a big football competition in Brazil. It's like the main cup tournament for Brazilian clubs. Imagine it as Brazil's version of the FA Cup in England or the Copa del Rey in Spain.
A total of 92 teams play in this tournament. These teams come from all 26 Brazilian states and the Federal District. Winning the Copa do Brasil is a huge deal because it's almost as important as winning the main Brazilian League (the Brasileirão). Plus, the winning team gets a lot of prize money!
One cool thing about the Copa do Brasil is that it gives smaller teams a chance to play against the famous big clubs. The team that wins the cup automatically gets a spot in the next Copa Libertadores, which is the biggest football tournament for clubs in South America.
When the Copa do Brasil first started in 1989, only 32 clubs played. Over the years, more and more teams joined. By 2001, 64 teams were playing, and now, since 2021, there are 92 teams!
From 2001 to 2012, teams that were already playing in the Copa Libertadores couldn't join the Copa do Brasil. This was because their schedules were too busy. But since 2013, things changed! Teams in the Copa Libertadores now join the Copa do Brasil later in the tournament, usually in the Round of 16.
In recent years, the tournament has had different sponsors. For example, in 2023, it was called the Copa Betano do Brasil. In 2024, it became the Copa Lawson do Brasil.
The club that has won the Copa do Brasil the most times is Cruzeiro, with six titles. Grêmio is next with five wins. Other successful clubs include Palmeiras and Flamengo (four titles each), and Corinthians (three titles). In total, 16 different clubs have won the cup. The state of São Paulo has the most winning teams, with 10 titles overall.
Contents
How the Tournament Works
The Copa do Brasil is a knockout tournament. This means that if a team loses a match, they are out of the competition.
In the first two rounds, teams play a single match. The team that wins moves on. If the game is a draw in the first round, the away team (the team playing at the other team's stadium) wins and goes through. From the third round onwards, teams play two matches against each other (called a two-legged tie). The team with the best total score from both matches wins.
The winner of the Copa do Brasil always gets to play in the next year's Copa Libertadores, which is a very important international club competition.
Who Plays in the Cup?
The teams that get to play in the Copa do Brasil include:
- The winner of the previous year's Copa do Brasil.
- 70 teams that did well in their state championships.
- The top six teams from the previous year's main Brazilian League (Série A).
- The champions of other regional cups like the Copa do Nordeste (Northeast Cup) and the Copa Verde (Green Cup).
- The top ten teams from the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) ranking that haven't already qualified.
- Also, some special spots are given to Brazilian teams that won the Copa Libertadores or Copa Sudamericana (other big South American tournaments), or other high-ranking teams from the Série A or Série B leagues.
Teams that play in the Copa Libertadores, along with champions of other big Brazilian leagues and cups, join the Copa do Brasil later, usually starting from the Round of 16.
History of the Copa do Brasil
| Season | Winners |
|---|---|
| 1989 |  Grêmio |
| 1990 |  Flamengo |
| 1991 |  Criciúma |
| 1992 | Internacional |
| 1993 |  Cruzeiro |
| 1994 | Grêmio (2) |
| 1995 |  Corinthians |
| 1996 | Cruzeiro (2) |
| 1997 | Grêmio (3) |
| 1998 | Palmeiras |
| 1999 | Juventude |
| 2000 | Cruzeiro (3) |
| 2001 | Grêmio (4) |
| 2002 | Corinthians (2) |
| 2003 | Cruzeiro (4) |
| 2004 | Santo André |
| 2005 | Paulista |
| 2006 | Flamengo (2) |
| 2007 | Fluminense |
| 2008 |  Sport Recife |
| 2009 | Corinthians (3) |
| 2010 | Santos |
| 2011 | Vasco da Gama |
| 2012 | Palmeiras (2) |
| 2013 | Flamengo (3) |
| 2014 | Atlético Mineiro |
| 2015 | Palmeiras (3) |
| 2016 | Grêmio (5) |
| 2017 | Cruzeiro (5) |
| 2018 | Cruzeiro (6) |
| 2019 |  Athletico Paranaense |
| 2020 | Palmeiras (4) |
| 2021 | Atlético Mineiro (2) |
| 2022 | Flamengo (4) |
| 2023 | São Paulo |
The Copa do Brasil was created in 1989. It was started to give more teams, especially those from smaller states, a chance to play against big national clubs. Before this, many smaller teams didn't get to compete on a national level. The cup helps make state championships more important too.
The very first goal in the Copa do Brasil was scored by Alcindo Sartori in 1989. His team, Flamengo, won that game. Grêmio was the first team to ever win the Copa do Brasil in 1989. This win allowed them to play in the Copa Libertadores the next year.
For a while, if a club won the Copa do Brasil three times, they got to keep the actual trophy forever. Grêmio was the first team to do this in 2001. Because of this, a new trophy was made for the 2002 tournament.
In 2003, Cruzeiro achieved something amazing. They won both the Copa do Brasil and the main Brazilian League in the same year! This was a rare feat. Only one other club, Atlético Mineiro, has done this, in 2021. Atlético Mineiro also won their state championship that year, completing a "treble" (winning three major titles in one season).
In 2008, a new trophy was introduced again. That year, Sport Recife became the first team from outside the Southeast or South regions of Brazil to win the cup. This showed that teams from other parts of Brazil could also be champions.
The number of teams playing in the Copa do Brasil has changed a lot. It started with 32 teams, grew to 69 by 2000, and settled at 64 teams for over a decade. Since 2013, the tournament has expanded even more, reaching 92 teams today.
Sponsorship
The Copa do Brasil has had different sponsors over the years, which sometimes changes the official name of the tournament.
| Years | Official Sponsor | Name |
|---|---|---|
| 2009–2012 | Kia Motors | Copa Kia do Brasil |
| 2013 | Perdigão | Copa Perdigão do Brasil |
| 2014–2015 | Sadia | Copa Sadia do Brasil |
| 2016–2020 | Continental | Copa Continental do Brasil |
| 2021–2022 | Intelbras | Copa Intelbras do Brasil |
| 2023 | Betano | Copa Betano do Brasil |
| 2024– | Lawson | Copa Lawson do Brasil |
Records and Statistics
Finalists
This table shows which clubs have won the Copa do Brasil and which ones have been the runner-up (finished second).
| Club | Winners | Runners-up | Years won | Years runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cruzeiro |
6 | 2 | 1993, 1996, 2000, 2003, 2017, 2018 | 1998, 2014 |
| Grêmio |
5 | 4 | 1989, 1994, 1997, 2001, 2016 | 1991, 1993, 1995, 2020 |
| Flamengo |
4 | 5 | 1990, 2006, 2013, 2022 | 1997, 2003, 2004, 2017, 2023 |
| Palmeiras |
4 | 1 | 1998, 2012, 2015, 2020 | 1996 |
| Corinthians |
3 | 4 | 1995, 2002, 2009 | 2001, 2008, 2018, 2022 |
| Atlético Mineiro |
2 | 1 | 2014, 2021 | 2016 |
| Internacional |
1 | 2 | 1992 | 2009, 2019 |
| Fluminense |
1 | 2 | 2007 | 1992, 2005 |
| Athletico Paranaense |
1 | 2 | 2019 | 2013, 2021 |
| Sport |
1 | 1 | 2008 | 1989 |
| Santos |
1 | 1 | 2010 | 2015 |
| Vasco da Gama |
1 | 1 | 2011 | 2006 |
| São Paulo |
1 | 1 | 2023 | 2000 |
| Criciúma |
1 | 0 | 1991 | — |
| Juventude |
1 | 0 | 1999 | — |
| Santo André |
1 | 0 | 2004 | — |
| Paulista |
1 | 0 | 2005 | — |
| Coritiba |
0 | 2 | — | 2011, 2012 |
 Goiás |
0 | 1 | — | 1990 |
 Ceará |
0 | 1 | — | 1994 |
| Botafogo |
0 | 1 | — | 1999 |
 Brasiliense |
0 | 1 | — | 2002 |
| Figueirense |
0 | 1 | — | 2007 |
 Vitória |
0 | 1 | — | 2010 |
Performance by State
This table shows how many times clubs from each Brazilian state have won or been runner-up in the Copa do Brasil.
| State | Won | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|
 São Paulo |
11 | 7 |
| Minas Gerais |
8 | 3 |
| Rio Grande do Sul |
7 | 6 |
| Rio de Janeiro |
6 | 9 |
| Paraná |
1 | 4 |
| Pernambuco |
1 | 1 |
 Santa Catarina |
1 | 1 |
 Bahia |
0 | 1 |
| Ceará |
0 | 1 |
| Distrito Federal |
0 | 1 |
| Goiás |
0 | 1 |
See also
- Copa do Brasil de Futebol Feminino, the women's version of Copa do Brasil.
- History of football in Brazil
