TBT #21 Leão memories: Sávio, 2010 Santa Catarina champion

In partnership with

Avaí F.C.

·17 Juli 2026

TBT #21 Leão memories: Sávio, 2010 Santa Catarina champion

Every Thursday, Avaí Futebol Clube celebrates a former athlete who left a mark on the club’s century-long history. We remember stars who brought us so much joy wearing the blue and white colors.

We have already covered here the story of: #01 ROGÉRIO ÁVILA – HERE #02 CAVALLAZZI – The Golden Boy - HERE #03 FLÁVIO ROBERTO – 1988 champion - HERE #04 JUTI – The goalscoring champion of 1975, HERE, #05 TONINHO QUINTINO – 1973 Santa Catarina State Champion HERE,  #06 NIZETA, four-time Santa Catarina state champion HERE, #07 ADILSON HELENO – 1988 Santa Catarina State Champion, HERE,  #08 ADOLFINHO – The greatest goalkeeper from Santa Catarina of all time HERE, #09 BALDUÍNO – The Little King, Santa Catarina State Champion in 1973 and 1975 HERE, #010 ZENON – Santa Catarina State Champion in 1973 and 1975 HERE, #011 CLÉBER SANTANA – Avaí’s eternal number 88, Santa Catarina state champion in 2012 HERE #012 VENEZA – The best center-back in Avaí’s history, Santa Catarina state champion in 1975 HERE     #013 BELMONTE – Two-time Santa Catarina State Champion (1988 and 1997) and Copa Santa Catarina Champion (1995) HERE   #014 MIRINHO – one of the great idols in Avaí’s history HERE   #015 BIRA LOPES – one of the greatest midfielders in Avaí’s history HERE #016 FOSSATI – goalkeeper, 1988 Santa Catarina State Champion HERE #017 EMERSON, a goalscoring center-back who made history at Avaí HERE #018 DÃO, forward, Santa Catarina State Champion in 1997 and Brazilian Série C Champion in 1998 HERE #019 FANTICK, local forward, Copa Santa Catarina champion, 1997 Santa Catarina State Champion and 1998 Brazilian Série C Champion HERE #020 ROGÉRIO PRATEAT, center-back, 1998 Brazilian Série C Champion HERE. In the 21st edition, we will look back at SÁVIO, an attacking midfielder who was a Santa Catarina state champion in 2010.

Video OneFootball

Photo: Alceu Atherino / Avaí F.C. (01/22/2010)

Sávio Bortolini Pimentel, or simply Sávio, was born on January 9, 1974 (52 years old), in Vila Velha, Espírito Santo. Over the course of his career, Sávio has 655 matches and 188 goals. At Avaí, he played as an attacking midfielder in 2010. He made 30 appearances and scored four goals, according to the data published in the book AVAÍ F.C. 100 Years of Stories 1923 – 2023, by Dois Por Quatro publishing house, written by Adalberto Jorge Klüser, Felipe Matos and Spyros Apóstolo Diamantaras. Sávio began in the youth ranks of Desportiva Ferroviária-ES. He turned professional at Flamengo-RJ, where he played for more than a decade and was nicknamed by the fans “The Blonde Angel of Gávea.” In addition to Flamengo and Avaí, he played for Real Madrid (1998-2002), Bordeaux (2002-2003), Zaragoza (2003-2006), Real Sociedad and Levante (2007), Desportiva-ES (2008) and Anorthosis, from Cyprus (2008-2009). He ended his career at Avaí, in 2010, when he was crowned Santa Catarina state champion that year.

His arrival at Avaí took place on January 6, 2010, when he was officially presented in the press room at Ressacada Stadium by then-president João Nilson Zunino.

A skillful forward, with grit and pace, he made his debut in an Avaí shirt on February 1, 2010, in a match against Imbituba-SC in that year’s Santa Catarina Championship. Avaí won 4-2, with goals from Rafael, Jandson, Medina and Roberto.

Sávio’s first goal in an Avaí shirt, came on February 24, in Avaí’s 3-0 win over Ypiranga of Erechim-RS in the Copa do Brasil. On that occasion, Sávio scored twice. The other goal for the Island Lion was scored by Robinho. Sávio’s other two goals for Avaí came against Brusque (02/28/2010 Avaí 2×0 Brusque) and Brusque again (04/11/2010 Avaí 4×3 Brusque).

On May 9, 2014, journalist Polidoro Júnior published an exclusive interview with Sávio on his website. On that occasion, the star looked back on his career, titles, and spoke about his time at Avaí in 2010.

“I am very grateful to Avaí for the opportunity. We had a goal and I believe we achieved it, which was to become Santa Catarina state champions,” said Sávio.

Read the full interview:

In 2015, Sávio released his book, titled “Sávio – Precise Dribbles in a Successful Career,” written by journalist Renan Koerich. The publication, from Maquinaria Editora, has 224 pages and details his 22-year journey in football and his work as a businessman.

HUNG UP HIS BOOTS

After hanging up his boots, he began investing in real estate and player management. He currently lives in Florianópolis with his wife and three children. RESEARCH SOURCES  –– KLÜSER, Adalberto; MATOS, Felipe. and DIAMANTARAS, Spyros. The Team of Grit – Almanac of 90 Years of Avaí Futebol Clube, 1923-2013.     –– KLÜSER, Adalberto; MATOS, Felipe. and DIAMANTARAS, Spyros. AVAÍ F.C. 100 years of stories 1923 – 2023     – Alceu Atherino photo archive / Avaí F.C. – Avaí Play channel on YouTube; – Troféu Debate channel on YouTube; – Memória Avaiana website;  – Avaí F.C. official website;  – Polidoro Júnior website; – ND Mais website;

PHOTOS OF SÁVIO AT AVAÍ