Porto Vitória celebrate first Capixabão title and national spots | OneFootball

Porto Vitória is celebrating a special moment that will be forever etched in its history. Last Saturday (28), the club won the Capixabão title for the first time by defeating Serra 4-3 on aggregate, in a historic and thrilling final.

In addition to the state trophy, Porto is also celebrating qualification for two more competitions next year: the Brazilian Série D and either the Copa Verde or the Copa Sul-Sudeste (Espírito Santo is awaiting the CBF’s decision on which regional tournament it will play in 2027). Both finalist clubs had already secured spots in the 2027 Copa do Brasil. The final also brought prize money of R$ 195,000 for the champion and R$ 105,000 for the runner-up.

The title came on the very birthday of the yellow-and-green president, Vinicius Coelho, who heard “Happy Birthday to You” sung by the players and coaching staff during the award ceremony. Vinicius recalled that the club had been pursuing the state title since 2021, when it began competing professionally. Before that, Porto, which was founded in 2014 with an initial focus on youth categories, had also won the Copa Espírito Santo in 2024.

“The feeling is one of immense gratitude. I’m very grateful to God and to this group. We pulled together when it mattered most. There was a moment when the club could have been relegated, and we all knew what we were capable of. In the end, it worked out, and we are champions. Now it’s time to plan for the next two competitions (the Copa Centro-Oeste and the Copa Espírito Santo) and also for next season. This title means a lot to us; it crowns our work. It was something we wanted from the start, and we’re not stopping here, you can be sure of that,” said Vinicius.

FES president Gustavo Vieira gave a positive assessment of the Capixabão, which was sponsored by the Government of the State of Espírito Santo through Banestes and TVE, which broadcast all 59 matches of the championship. TV Vitória and Arquibancada Digital were also part of the coverage, broadcasting some matches.

“The assessment couldn’t be better. I think the bar is rising every year, the clubs are becoming more competitive, including in national competitions. We are performing well, going toe-to-toe with teams from other states, and the Capixabão is a gauge of that and is highly competitive. In this Capixabão, we saw Serra finish the first phase in second place and Porto come through in surprising fashion, both because of the threat of possible relegation and because of the comeback against Vitória (in the semifinals). So, we had many ingredients for a great final,” Gustavo said.

The match

After winning the first leg 3-1, Porto Vitória could afford to lose by as many as one goal and still be crowned champion in regulation time. And that is exactly what happened in the second leg of the Capixabão final, played on Saturday (28) in front of nearly 4,000 people at Kleber Andrade Stadium in Cariacica.

In the 39th minute of the first half, Porto made Serra’s task even harder by opening the scoring through Victor Rangel, who struck a fine curling shot from outside the box.

Serra, however, showed great determination and came from behind in the second half after being denied several times by outstanding saves from goalkeeper Rafael Mariano. In the 16th minute, Marcudinho rose unmarked and headed in the equalizer. Shortly afterward, in the 19th minute, Hygor, also with a header, scored the go-ahead goal.

But the tricolor side from Serra could not find another goal, which would have sent the decision to penalties, and Porto ended up celebrating at the final whistle with a 4-3 aggregate score.

Capixabão 2026 – Final Result (Second Leg)

– Serra 2 x 1 Porto Vitória (03/28, Kleber Andrade, Cariacica)

> Goals: Victor Rangel (Porto Vitória, 39th minute of the 1st Half), Marcudinho (Serra, 15th minute of the 2nd Half), and Hygor (Serra, 19th minute of the 2nd Half).

> Serra: Pedro Henrique; Rossales (Chico), Oscar (Damasceno), Yuri and Conrado; Walney, Knupp (Gean Miller), Dandan (Wendel), and Pepeu (Hygor); Marcudinho and Patrick. Head coach: Leomir Silveira.

> Porto Vitória: Rafael Mariano; Taleco, Reniê, Matheus Guedes, and Thallyson; Matheusão, Henrique Melo (Lucas Peres), and Matheus Firmino (Gama); Rian Felipe (Wesley), Victor Rangel (Adriano Bispo), and Pedro Felipe (Luiz Henrique). Head coach: João Burse.

> Officiating crew: Davi de Oliveira Lacerda (referee), Douglas Pagung (assistant referee 1), Pedro Amorim (assistant referee 2), Wendel Cabral (fourth official), Alex Mendonça (reserve referee), Fabiano Ramires (field analyst), Raphael Garcia (VAR), Katiuscia Mayer Berger (AVAR), Marcos André Gomes (VAR observer), and Carlos Eduardo Depizzol (Quality Manager).

> Attendance: 3,974 fans

> Revenue: R$ 77,720.00

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