Court denies Flamengo’s 1987 claim, trophy stays with São Paulo | OneFootball

Do you still remember the eternal rivalry between Flamengo and São Paulo over the power of the Taça das Bolinhas, awarded to the club that was the first to win three consecutive national championships or five alternated titles, an achievement only accomplished by Tricolor?

Well, the team from Rio still laments the loss of the trophy to this day, claiming they were five-time national champions first, counting the 1987 Brazilian title—a title that remains hotly debated, with many asserting that it actually belongs to Sport. The CBF recognizes both as champions of the disorganized Brasileirão that year.

However, Flamengo once again went to court to claim their victory, but this was denied on Tuesday (7th) by the 1st Civil Court of Barra da Tijuca, in Rio de Janeiro (RJ), which dismissed the lawsuit filed by the club against the CBF and São Paulo in a final attempt to secure the disputed trophy, according to initial reports from GE.com.

From now on, the debate is closed in higher courts and no further interpretation is possible, according to the decision announced by Judge Arthur Eduardo Magalhães Ferreira.

The judge ruled that Sport is the true Brazilian champion of 1987—a decision that has become final—and that São Paulo was the first club to meet the criteria established in 1975 to win the Taça das Bolinhas, either five alternated national titles or three consecutive ones.

They’ll still have to pay the costs!

Flamengo’s action was classified by the Court as a last-ditch attempt to revive a matter already settled by the judiciary, which also warned of abuse of the right to legal action. The Rio team was also ordered to pay court costs and R$20,000 in attorney’s fees to each defendant (CBF and São Paulo).

“Fans may claim that the Plaintiff is (or would be) the 1987 Brazilian champion; however, by final and unappealable decision of the Supreme Federal Court (STF), the champion is Sport Club do Recife. Simple as that,” wrote Magalhães Ferreira in his final ruling.

If they want to keep complaining, Flamengo can still appeal the decision to the Rio de Janeiro Court of Justice (TJ-RJ), but since the ruling warns that the matter has already been absolutely settled in higher courts, the chances of a different outcome are minimal.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.