 | ||||
| Full name | Club de Regatas Vasco da Gama | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nicknames | Gigante da Colina (Giant of the Hill) Camisas Negras (Black Shirts) Vascão (Big Vasco) Cruzmaltino (Maltese Cross) O Legítimo Clube do Povo (The Real People's Club) Vascaínos orCruzmaltinos (supporters)[1] | |||
| Founded | 21 August 1898; 127 years ago (1898-08-21) | |||
| Ground | São Januário Maracanã | |||
| Capacity | 21,880[2] 78,838[3] | |||
| SAF owner | 777 Partners (suspended)[4] Club de Regatas Vasco da Gama (100%) | |||
| President | Pedrinho | |||
| Head coach | Fernando Diniz | |||
| League | Campeonato Brasileiro Série A Campeonato Carioca | |||
| 2024 2024 | Série A, 10th of 20 Carioca, 3rd of 12 | |||
| Website | vasco | |||
 Current season | ||||
| Active departments ofVasco da Gama | ||||||||
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Club de Regatas Vasco da Gama (Portuguese pronunciation:[ˈklubidʒiʁeˈɡatɐzˈvaskudɐˈɡɐ̃mɐ]; English: Vasco da Gama Club of Rowing), commonly referred to asVasco da Gama or simplyVasco, is asports club based inRio de Janeiro, Brazil. Although originally a rowing club and then a multi-sport club, Vasco is mostly known for its men'sfootball team, which currently competes in theCampeonato Brasileiro Série A, the top tier of theBrazilian football league system, and in theCampeonato Carioca, thestate of Rio de Janeiro's premierstate league.[5]
Named afterVasco da Gama 400 years after hisEuropean–Asian sea route in 1498, the club was founded in 1898 as a rowing club by Brazilian workers,Portuguese Brazilians and newly arrivedPortuguese immigrants.[6][7] Vasco created its football department in 1915, withprofessionalism officially adopted in 1933 – pioneer in Brazil.[8][9] In addition to its main departments of football and rowing, Vasco has other sports departments since the 1910s. Itsyouth academy, which has brought upinternational footballers such asRomário,Philippe Coutinho,Hilderaldo Bellini,Roberto Dinamite andEdmundo, is well known for its socio-educational methodology.[10]
At the national level, Vasco da Gama has won fourCampeonato Brasileiro Série A, threeTorneio Rio–São Paulo and oneCopa do Brasil. In international club football, the club has won oneCopa Libertadores, oneSouth American Championship of Champions, and oneCopa Mercosur. At the state level, the club has also won 24Campeonato Carioca. Thegolden generation of Vasco da Gama, dubbedExpresso da Vitória (Victory Express), won fivestate titles in the eight-year span between 1945 and 1952, and led Vasco to become the first continental club champion ever with the1948 South American Championship of Champions title. This team, which includedMoacir Barbosa,Ademir de Menezes,Friaça,Danilo Alvim,Augusto da Costa, andChico, 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, theRio de Janeiro state and theAmericas. Vasco plays its home matches inSão Januário stadium since its inauguration in 1927. Occasionally, the club has also played their home matches inMaracanã stadium since its inauguration in 1950. Vasco holds long-standings rivalries withFlamengo,Fluminense andBotafogo. Originally from rowing in the 1900s and extending to football in the 1920s asO Clássico dos Milhões (the Derby of Millions), the Vasco–Flamengo rivalry is considered of the main rivalries ofBrazilian sports and one of the most prominent football rivalries in the world.
In the late 19th century,rowing was the most important sport inRio 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 toNiterói to row with the boats of Gragoatá Club, decided to found a rowing club.[citation needed]
On 21 August 1898, in a room of theSons of Talma Dramatic Society, 62 members (mostly Portuguese immigrants) formedClub 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 explorerVasco da Gama.[9] The club's colors were chosen as black and white; black was chosen as a representation of the unknown seas Vasco da Gama sailed through, and white represented his victorious route. The first kit used these colors in a half and half combination, with theOrder of Christ Cross in the center symbolizing theChristian faith just like in the sails ofGama's São Gabriel carrack. The emblem was created shortly after too; it was round with a sailboat bearing theCross pattée.
On 26 November 1915, Vasco and Lusitania Sport Clube, another sports club founded by the local Portuguese community in Brazil and named afterLusitania 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.
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 the1923 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, includingFluminense,Flamengo andBotafogo created the Metropolitan Athletic Association and prohibited Vasco from participating unless it complied with their racist demands.[citation needed]
As a result, the former President of Vasco, José Augusto Prestes, responded with a letter that became known as the Historic Response (Resposta Histórica),[11][12] 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).[13] 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.[citation needed]
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.[citation needed]
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.[citation needed]
On 21 April 1927, Vasco's Stadium was inaugurated with a match againstSantos. Santos won the match 5–3.[14] On 26 April 1931, Vasco had a historic 7–0 victory over rivals Flamengo; this is the largest victory margin between the two clubs.
Between 1944 and 1953, the club was nicknamedExpresso da Vitória (Victory Express), as Vasco won several competitions in that period, such as theRio de Janeiro championship in 1945, 1947, 1949, 1950, and 1952, and theSouth American Club Championship, the world's first ever continental club tournament, in 1948. Players such asAdemir de Menezes,Moacyr Barbosa,Bellini andIpojucan starred in Vasco's colors during that period.[15] In 1953, Vasco da Gama won three international tournaments, theTorneio Intercontinental Octogonal Rivadavia Correa Meyer, theSantiago International Tournament [es], defeating Colombian championsMillonarios and Chilean clubColo-Colo, and theQuadrangular Internacional do Rio de Janeiro [pt], defeatingBoca Juniors,Racing and their rivalsFlamengo.
In 1956, the Vascaínos becameCampeonato Carioca champions andLittle World Cup runner-up, losing the title toDi Stefano's Real Madrid, which Vasco would beat in a friendly shortly after the tournament, becoming the first non-European club to defeat a European Champion.[16] 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 the1957 Tournoi de Paris 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 beatAthletic Bilbao (Spanish League and Cup champions in the previous year) by winning theTeresa Herrera Trophy with a 4–2 scoreline, andBarcelona (Spanish Cup champion a week earlier) insideLes 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.[17]Benfica (Portuguese champion andLatin 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.[18]
In early 1958, just before theWorld Cup, Vasco won theRio-São Paulo Tournament, the most important championship in Brazil at the time, which included legendary teams such as Pele's Santos, Garrincha's Botafogo, Zagallo's Flamengo, and Tele Santana's Fluminense. After this memorable title, three Vasco players had important parts in the campaign for Brazil's first World Cup title:Vavá (who scored five goals in the World Cup, including two in thefinal) and defendersOrlando andBellini (Bellini was still the Brazilian captain). After the World Cup, the team then won one of the greatest Carioca Championships of all time. In an epic competition against Zagallo's Flamengo and Garrincha's Botafogo, which ended in a three-way tie on 32 points and required two extra tiebreaker tournaments to decide the champion, Vasco became the1958 Campeonato Carioca "super-superchampion".[19]
In 1959, the team went on to beat great European teams like Italian championMilan andAtletico de Madrid (European Cup semi-finalist that year). Vasco was also Rio-São Tournament runner-up that year, only behind Pele's Santos. Still in 1959, five Vasco players were called up for the1959 Copa America:Paulinho,Orlando,Bellini,Coronel (defenders) andAlmir (striker), with the four aforementioned Vasco players almost always being included in the starting eleven. Vasco, together with Botafogo, was the club that gave the most players to the Brazil national team in that period. Many think this Vasco was one of the best clubs of the world at the time, and maybe the best in 1957–58.[20]
The 1960s were a difficult period for the club, having only average performances with the exception of 1965 and 1966; in the1965 Campeonato Brasileiro (known as Taça Brasil at the time), Vasco reached the final, losing to Pele's Santos 1–6 on aggregate. In the1966 Torneio Rio-São Paulo, the club ended the tournament in a four way tie. Since there was no tiebreaking criteria, a quadrangular involving Botafogo, Corinthians, Santos and Vasco should have been played, but due to the preparation of theBrazil national team for the1966 FIFA World Cup, theCBD decided to proclaim all four clubs as champions.
In 1970, under star playersRoberto Dinamite andEdgardo Andrada, Vasco won theCampeonato Carioca 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.[21]
After winning theCampeonato Brasileiro in1997, beatingPalmeiras in the final, Vasco started itsProjeto Tóquio, and invested US$10 million to win the1998 Copa Libertadores. The club won the tournament in its Centenary Year, beatingBarcelona ofEcuador in thefinals 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 earned a berth in the1998 Intercontinental Cup, where they faced the1997–98 UEFA Champions League winnersReal Madrid and lost 2–1.
As a result of their Copa Libertadores title two years prior, Vasco earned a berth for the inaugural2000 FIFA Club World Championship held in Brazil. They beatManchester United of England,Necaxa of Mexico, andSouth Melbourne of Australia in the group stage to reach the final. It finished 0–0 after extra time in an all-Brazilian clash withCorinthians, but Vasco lost 3–4 in the penalty shootout.[22]
Vasco'sCopa Mercosur campaignthat year began with a 4–3 loss toPeñarol, but Vasco eventually qualified to the knockout round with ten points.[23] In the quarter finals, Vasco eliminatedRosario Central on penalties after the Argentine side scored a late equalizer to send the game to a penalty shootout. In the semi-finals, Vasco eliminated River Plate 5–1 on aggregate, with a famous 4–1 victory atEstadio Monumental in the first leg. Vasco qualified to the finals againstPalmeiras, and 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. On 20 December 2000, in a match which is still considered as one of the best in Brazilian football history,[24][25][26] Vasco found itself trailing 3–0 at half-time, and Palmeiras had scored 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 afterJúnior 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.[27]
Vasco also won theCopa João Havelange in 2000. Seen as a controversial competition organized byClube dos 13 rather thanCBF, Vasco playedSão Caetano in thefinals. The club drew the first game 1–1 atEstádio Palestra Itália, and the second game was called off by Rio de Janeiro State GovernorAnthony Garotinho in the first half because a fence collapsed at São Januário, which resulted in many injuries.[28][29][30] Despite the disaster, Vasco won the rescheduled second leg 3–1 at the Maracana to lift the trophy for its fourth national league title.
In the2001 Copa Libertadores, Vasco became the first team to win all six group games, which included big victories (0–3 and 4–1), against Colombian championsAmérica de Cali. In the round of 16, the club eliminatedDeportes Concepción, but then suffered a 4–0 aggregate loss against eventual championsBoca Juniors, which was considered a disappointing elimination despite the high hopes that were set after their perfect group stage run.[31]
Shortly after the 2001 season, the club experienced a sharp decline, finishing 15th in2002 and narrowly avoiding relegation in2003 and2004, although in2005 they qualified for the2006 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 theCopa do Brasil final for the first time, losing to Flamengo.
The team finished the2008 Série A in a disastrous 18th place and was relegated to thesecond division for the first time since its foundation after a 0–2 home loss againstVitória.[32] Until then, it had been one of only six clubs to have never been relegated from the first division, along withCruzeiro,Flamengo, andSão Paulo. (The last two did not participate in the1979 Brazilian Championship, in order to avoid conflicts with Paulista Championship schedule.)
Despite suffering relegation, Vasco had a respectable run in theCopa do Brasil, making it al the way to the semi-finals where they were eliminated by eventual championSport Recife on penalties.[33]
Vasco immediately secured their return to Serie A, sealing promotion to the2010 Série A on 7 November 2009 with a 2–1 victory overJuventude in front of a Serie B-record 81,000 fans atMaracanã, and finishing as Serie B champions as well.[34]
In the 2010 league season, their first season back in the top flight since relegation, Vasco finished in 11th place, and qualified for the2011 Copa Sudamericana. In the2010 Copa do Brasil, Vasco reached the quarterfinals, being eliminated by Vitória on away goals.
Vasco had a poor start to the2011 season, losing four consecutive games in theGuanabara Cup, which led to the sacking ofPaulo Gusmāo and the appointment ofRicardo Gomes. With the arrival of Gomes, combined with the arrivals ofAlecsandro,Bernardo, andDiego Souza, the club fared better in the Rio Cup, losing only once on their way to the final, where they lost on penalties to Flamengo. In theCopa do Brasil, Vasco were unbeaten on their way to thefinals, where they beatCoritiba on away goals and lifted the trophy for the first time in the club's history;[35] just three days after the first leg, Coritiba beat Vasco 5–1 in the league.[36] Despite the heavy defeat, Vasco enjoyed an excellentleague 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 theCopa Sudamericana, a competition that saw the club defeatPalmeiras on away goals, and achieve comeback victories againstAurora andUniversitario, before being eliminated by eventual championUniversidad de Chile.[37] The season was dubbed as Vasco's"Redemption Year", with many lauding Vasco as one ofBrazilian football's elite teams once again.[38][39][40]
Vasco's played their first final of the2012 season in theGuanabara Cup, 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 theRio Cup, eliminating Flamengo in the semifinals again.
Vasco qualified for the2012 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 withLibertad on points and only losing once. Vasco beatLanús on penalties in the round of 16,[41] to set a quarterfinal matchup with Corinthians, who eliminated Vasco 1–0 with an 88th-minute goal byPaulinho.[42][43] In theBrazilian 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.
After a good season in 2012, Vasco started their 2013 poorly and were hampered by financial issues. In theTaca 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 toAtletico Paranaense on the final matchday.[44] In theCopa do Brasil the team entered in the round of 16, beatingNacional and then being eliminated byGoiás on away goals, despite winning the second leg 3–2.
After one season in theSérie B during 2014, Vasco gained promotion and in May 2015 won theCampeonato Carioca after a 12-year hiatus. However, they were relegated again in the2015 edition, placing eighteenth. In2016, Vasco became back-to-backCarioca champions and had a 34-match unbeaten streak, their longest in official games.[45] Once again, they were promoted after one season in Série B. However, in the2020 season, they were relegated for the fourth time and then failed to gain promotion during the2021 season, placing tenth.[46]
On 22 February 2022 it was announced that777 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.[47]
On 6 November 2022, Vasco sealed their return to Série A after a two-year absence, finishing fourth in the league table. Their promotion was secured after a difficult 1–0 victory againstItuano, through a penalty scored byNenê.[48][49]
The club finished 15th in the2023 Série A and improved this with a 10th-placed finish in the2024 Série A.
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.[50]
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 sailboat, and removed the rectangles that had been present in the 2015 logo.[50]
Given the 2017 Royal Patronage, the shied logo can be topped by the Portuguese royal heraldic crown.
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.[50]
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,UruguayanOndino Viera liked the sash used in his previous club's kit,River Plate ofArgentina, and adopted this pattern in Vasco's away kit. So, both kits had a right-to-left diagonal sash.[50]
In the 1970s theOrder of Christ Cross was replaced with the cross pattée, 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.[50]
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 was willing to give up playing in the following year due to other clubs' opposition to Vasco having black players.
From July 2009, after breaking the partnership with Champs,[51] to 2013, the official jerseys were produced by Penalty.[52] Since 2020, the kits are made byKappa (brand).[53]
Vasco's official anthem was composed in 1918, by Joaquim Barros Ferreira da Silva, and it was the club's first anthem.[54] There is another official anthem, created in the 1930s, called "Meu Pavilhão" (meaningMy 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.
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 KingCarlos I to Brazil, who had already decided to renew and confer the title of "Royal Society", which Vasco had already enjoyed during the period whenLuís I was King of Portugal, but was prevented from doing so by theregicide of February 1, 1908.[55][56][57][58]
Vasco da Gama's stadium isSão Januário, inaugurated in 1927, with a maximum capacity of 35,000 people. For national matches, however, the stadium could only fit at most 21,880 people for security reasons.[2] Occasionally, Vasco uses the 78,000-seaterMaracanã for derbies or international matches.
According to census and polls, Vasco da Gama is the second mostsupported 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.[59][60][61]Vasco fans are very diverse stretching across social class lines, however the core of most Vasco support lies within the working class of theNorthern Zone of Rio de Janeiro andRio outskirt cities likeNiterói. Vasco da Gama have significant support in other regions in Brazil, notably theNortheastern andNorth regions as well as strongholds insouthern Minas Gerais,Espírito Santo and inSanta Catarina. Vasco also have a huge support inDistrito Federal; a study conducted byTV Globo concluded that Vasco were the second-most supported team in the city, behind Flamengo.[62] As of 29 June 2022, the club has 60,326sócios in its membership program, having its peak in December 2019 with more than 178,000 memberships.[63] In April 2023,CNN carried out a survey that revealed that Vasco is the team with the most fans considered "fanatics" in theSoutheast Region clubs and among theG-12 (Big Twelve), in addition to being the third in the country.[64][65]
Vasco's first trophy was the 1923 Campeonato Carioca, during the club's debut season in the state's first division, won by a squad in which the majority of players were black and which greatly influenced the fight against racism in Brazilian football. For a large portion of fans, the club's most important honour is not a trophy, but rather theResposta Histórica, a letter sent in 1924 refusing the discriminatory order of the Rio de Janeiro league, which wanted to ban Vasco from its competitions if it did not disaffiliate twelve of its players (all black).[71][72]
Vasco is the first Brazilian team (club or national team) to win an international tournament and the first club in the world to win a continental-level tournament, the1948 South American Championship of Champions. The club was also the first to win an intercontinental tournament contested by two continental champion clubs, the1957 Tournoi de Paris, againstReal Madrid in the final.
In terms of the number of trophies won, Vasco's most successful decade was the 1990s, when the club won two Campeonato Brasileiro titles, four Campeonato Carioca, one Torneio Rio–São Paulo, one Copa Libertadores and one Copa Mercosul.[73]
| Intercontinental | ||
|---|---|---|
| Competitions | Titles | Seasons |
| Tournoi de Paris | 1 | 1957[74] |
| Continental | ||
| Competitions | Titles | Seasons |
| Copa Libertadores | 1 | 1998 |
| South American Championship of Champions | 1 | 1948[75] |
| Copa Mercosur | 1s | 2000 |
| National | ||
| Competitions | Titles | Seasons |
| Campeonato Brasileiro Série A | 4 | 1974,1989,1997,2000 |
| Copa do Brasil | 1 | 2011 |
| Campeonato Brasileiro Série B | 1 | 2009 |
| Inter-state | ||
| Competitions | Titles | Seasons |
| Torneio Rio–São Paulo | 3 | 1958, 1966, 1999 |
| Torneio João Havelange | 1 | 1993[76][77] |
| State | ||
| Competitions | Titles | Seasons |
| Campeonato Carioca | 24 | 1923,1924,1929,1934,1936,1945,1947,1949,1950,1952,1956,1958,1970,1977,1982,1987,1988,1992,1993,1994,1998,2003,2015,2016 |
| Copa Rio | 2 | 1992, 1993 |
Key:
| Campeonato Brasileiro Série A | |
| Campeonato Brasileiro Série B | |
 | Promoted |
 | Relegated |
|
South American Championship /Copa Libertadores
Tournoi de Paris /Intercontinental Cup /FIFA Club World Cup
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Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Ramón Platero (1922–1926)
"Harry" Welfare (1927–1937)
Floriano Peixoto Corrêa (1937–1938)Russinho (1938)Carlos Scarone (1938–1939)Ramón Platero (1939–1940)Gentil Cardoso (1940)"Harry" Welfare (1940–1942)Telêmaco Frazão de Lima (1942)"Harry" Welfare (1942–1943)Ondino Viera (1943–1946)
Ernesto Santos (1946)
Roque Calocero (1946–1947)Otto Glória (1947)Flávio Costa (1947–1951)Otto Glória (1951–1952)Gentil Cardoso (1952–1953)Flávio Costa (1953–56)Martim Francisco (1956–1957)Gradim (1957–1959)Yustrich (1959–60)Ely (1960)Filpo Núñez (1960)Ely (1960)
Abel Picabea (1960–1961)Martim Francisco (1961)Ely (1961)Paulo Amaral (1961–62)Jorge Vieira (1962–1963)Otto Glória (1963)Eduardo Pelegrini (1963)Duque (1964)Ely (1964)Zezé Moreira (1965–1966)Ely (1966)Célio de Souza (1966)Zizinho (1967)Gentil Cardoso (1967)Ademir (1967)Paulinho (1968)Pinga (1968–1969)Evaristo de Macedo (1969)Paulinho (1969) Célio de Souza (1969)Tim (1970)Paulo Amaral (1971)Admildo Chirol [pt] (1971)Zizinho (1972) Célio de Souza (1972)Mário Travaglini (1972–75)Paulo Emilio (1976)Orlando Fantoni (1977–78)Carlos Froner (1979)Gílson Nuñes (1979)Otto Glória (1979)Orlando Fantoni (1980)Gílson Nuñes (1980)Mário Zagallo (1980–81)Antônio Lopes (1981–83)Zanata (1983)Júlio César Leal (1983)Otto Glória (1983)Júlio César Leal (1983)Edu Coimbra (1984–1885)Antônio Lopes (1985–1886)Cláudio Garcia (1986)Joel Santana (1986–1887)Sebastião Lazaroni (1987–1988)Zanata (1988–1989)Orlando Lelé (1989)Sérgio Cosme (1989)Alcir Portela (1990)Nelsinho Rosa (1989)Alcir Portela (1990)Mário Zagallo (1990–1991)Antônio Lopes (1991)Nelsinho Rosa (1992)Joel Santana (1992–1993)Alcir Portela (1993)Gaúcho (1993)Jair Pereira (1994)Sebastião Lazaroni (1994)Nelsinho Rosa (1995)Abel Braga (1995)Alcir Portela (1995)Jair Pereira (1995)Zanata (1995–1996)Alcir Portela (1996)Carlos Alberto Silva (1996)Alcir Portela (1996)Antônio Lopes (1996–2000)Abel Braga (2000)Alcir Portela(interim) (2000)Tita (1 January 2000 – 30 June 2000)Oswaldo de Oliveira (2000)Joel Santana (2000–01)Alcir Portela (2001)Hélio dos Anjos (2001)Paulo César Gusmão (2001)Evaristo de Macedo (2002)Antônio Lopes (2002–03)Mauro Galvão (2003)Geninho (15 December 2003 – 27 September 2004)Joel Santana (27 September 2004 – 20 April 2005)Dário Lourenço (2005)Renato Gaúcho (18 July 2005 – 12 April 2007)Celso Roth (15 April 2007 – 22 October 2007)Romário(interim) (22 October 2007 – 25 October 2007)Valdir Espinosa (26 October 2007 – 31 December 2007)Romário (1 January 2008 – 9 February 2008)Alfredo Sampaio (2008)Antônio Lopes (31 March 2008 – 7 August 2008)Tita (7 August 2008 – 17 September 2008)Renato Gaúcho (18 September 2008 – 7 December 2008)Dorival Júnior (12 December 2008 – 7 December 2009)Vágner Mancini (12 December 2009 – 26 March 2010)Gaúcho(interim) (30 March 2010 – 18 May 2010)Celso Roth (18 May 2010 – 12 June 2010)PC Gusmão (13 June 2010 – 28 January 2011)Ricardo Gomes (2 February 2011 – 28 August 2012)Cristóvão Borges (29 August 2011 – 10 September 2012)Gaúcho(interim) (11 September 2012 – 13 September 2012)Marcelo Oliveira (13 September 2012 – 5 November 2012)Gaúcho (6 November 2012 – 21 March 2013)Paulo Autuori (22 March 2013 – 9 July 2013)Dorival Júnior (11 July 2013 – 28 October 2013)Adílson Batista (2013–14)Joel Santana (2014)Doriva (Jan 2015 – July 2015)Celso Roth (July 2015 – Aug 2015)Jorginho (Aug 2015 – Nov 2016)Cristóvão Borges (Dec 2016 – March 2017)Milton Mendes (March 2017 – Aug 2017)Zé Ricardo (Aug 2017 – Jun 2018)Jorginho (Jun 2018 – Aug 2018)Alberto Valentim (Aug 2018 – April 2019)Vanderlei Luxemburgo (May 2019 – December 2019)Abel Braga (January 2020 – May 2020)Ramon Menezes (May 2020 – October 2020)Ricardo Sá Pinto (October 2020 – December 2020)Vanderlei Luxemburgo (December 2020 – February 2021 )Siston(interim) (2021)Cabo (2021)A. Gomes (interim) (2021)Lisca (2021)Diniz (2021)Cortez (interim) (2021)Zé Ricardo (2022)Faro (interim) (2022)M. Souza (2022)Maurício Barbieri (2023)Ramón Díaz (15 July 2023 – 27 April 2024)Rafael Paiva (interim) (28 April 2024 – 21 May 2024)Álvaro Pacheco (21 May 2024 – 20 June 2024)Rafael Paiva (interim) (20 June 2024 – 24 November 2024)Felipe (interim) (24 November 2024 – 19 December 2024)Fábio Carille (19 December 2024 – 27 April 2025)Felipe (interim) (27 April 2025 – 10 May 2025)Fernando Diniz (11 May 2025 – )Source:[83]
| Rank | Player | Years | Matches |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Roberto Dinamite | 1971–1993 | 1110 |
| 2. | Carlos Germano | 1990–2004 | 632 |
| 3. | Sabará | 1952–1964 | 576 |
| 4. | Mazarópi | 1974–1983 | 477 |
| 5. | Alcir Portella | 1964–1975 | 468 |
| 6. | Pinga | 1953–1961 | 461 |
| 7. | Acácio | 1982–1991 | 459 |
| 8. | Moacir Barbosa | 1945–1961 | 451 |
| 9. | Coronel | 1955–1963 | 449 |
| 10. | Paulinho de Almeida | 1954–1965 | 436 |
| 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 |
Vasco's biggest rivals are the other clubs in Rio de Janeiro:Flamengo,Botafogo andFluminense. However, Vasco also attracts antipathy from fans of several other clubs across the country. According to a survey released byESPN, Vasco is the third most hated club in the country, behind Flamengo andCorinthians, the clubs with the largest number of fans.[86] This is mainly due to the past history of controversial managers and players who passed through the club.[87][88][89]
Vasco's biggest rivalry is againstFlamengo, called theClássico dos Milhões (Derby of the Millions), 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.[90][91]
Vasco holds other strong local rivalry withFluminense, whose matches are known asClássico dos Gigantes (Giants Derby). The derby gets its name because of the "giant" matches between the two, mainly the finals of the1984 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, which Flumiense won, and the1985 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.
TheClássico da Amizade (Friendship Derby) is the rivlary between Vasco andBotafogo, 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.[92] The first match between the two clubs was in 1923, a 3–1 victory for Vasco.
The matches between Vasco andAmerica are known asClássico 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.[93]
Due to Vasco's tradition, several clubs are named after it, includingAssociação Desportiva Vasco da Gama, of Acre state, founded in 1952,Vasco Esporte Clube, ofSergipe state, founded in 1931,Esporte Clube Vasco da Gama, ofAmericana, São Paulo state, founded in 1958,Vasco Sports Club, which is an Indian football club founded in 1951,[94][95] andCR Vasco da Gama Football Club, which is a South African football club founded in 1980.Tomazinho Futebol Clube, fromSão João de Meriti, Rio de Janeiro state, founded in 1930, has a logo strongly inspired by Vasco's logo, and share the same colors.
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 timesBrazilian Champion and four timesSouth-American Champion) produced formerNBA playerNenê. The club is also the first Brazilian club to play against an NBA team, againstSan Antonio Spurs, in 1999, in theMcDonald'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 Championwomen's soccer team as well. Vasco's beach soccer team is one of the best in the world, being once World Champion, three timesSouth-American Champion and many times National Champion. In addition to these, Vasco has many other sports with World, South American and Brazilian titles.
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