Fortaleza lose to Botafogo and drop to Série B for a fifth time | OneFootball

Fortaleza was unable to avoid the worst in the final round of the Brazilian Championship. Despite fighting hard, the team ended up defeated 4-2 by Botafogo this Sunday at Nilton Santos Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, confirming their relegation to the second division.

The result sealed a bitter season for Leão do Pici, who depended on an away victory to keep their hopes of staying in the top flight alive. It was the fifth relegation in the history of the Ceará team, who had not returned to the Second Division since their comeback in 2018.

Table Situation

Glorioso reached 63 points and finished the Brasileirão in sixth place. So far, Glorioso will play in the qualifying phase of the Copa Libertadores. But they will reach the group stage if Cruzeiro and Fluminense win the Copa do Brasil.

Fortaleza, meanwhile, saw the momentum from recent matches turn into frustration. Stuck at 43 points, Leão was overtaken by Internacional and Vitória in the final round and will play Série B in 2026.

📋 Match Summary

⚫⚪ BOTAFOGO 4 X 2 FORTALEZA 🔵🔴⚪

🏆 Competition: Brazilian Championship (38th round) 🏟️ Venue: Nilton Santos Stadium, Rio de Janeiro (RJ) 📅 Date: December 7, 2025 (Sunday) ⏰ Time: 4:00 PM (Brasília time) 🟨 Yellow cards: Alexander Barboza and Kauan Toledo (Botafogo); Mancuso, Rodrigo, and Barrero (Fortaleza) 🟥 Red cards: none

REFEREEING

Referee: Paulo Cesar Zanovelli da Silva (MG) Assistants: Guilherme Dias Camilo (MG) and Celso Luiz da Silva (MG) VAR: Wagner Reway (SC)

GOALS

⚽ Breno Lopes, 16' 1st half (Fortaleza) ⚽ Montoro, 49' 1st half (Botafogo) ⚽ Bareiro, 11' 2nd half (Fortaleza) ⚽ Arthur Cabral, 2' 2nd half (Botafogo) ⚽ Marçal, 38' 2nd half (Botafogo) ⚽ Mateo Ponte, 49' 2nd half (Botafogo)

LINEUPS

⚫⚪ BOTAFOGO

Raul; Vitinho (Mateo Ponte), Gabriel Bahia, Marçal, and Alex Telles (Cuiabano); Allan, Marlon Freitas, and Álvaro Montoro (Newton); Artur (Santiago Rodríguez), Arthur Cabral, and Jordan Barrero (Kauan Toledo) Coach: Davide Ancelotti

🔵🔴⚪ FORTALEZA

Brenno; Mancuso (Rossetto), Lucas Gazal, Gastón Ávilla, and Diogo Barbosa (Weverson); Pierre (Rodrigo), Lucas Sasha, and Tomás Pochettino; Breno Lopes, Yago Pikachu (Lucas Crispim), and Adam Bareiro (Deyverson) Coach: Martín Palermo

How was the match?

FIRST HALF

Fortaleza opened the scoring at 16 minutes. After a cross, Botafogo's defense failed to clear, Breno Lopes got the ball at the edge of the box and curled a shot past goalkeeper Raul.

In the final minutes of the first half, Botafogo exchanged passes in the attacking half looking for space, facing a very effective Fortaleza defensive system. After much persistence, Glorioso equalized at 49 minutes. Vitinho crossed, the defense gave a rebound, and Montoro struck a beautiful shot into the top corner, scoring a great goal.

SECOND HALF

Just two minutes into the second half, Botafogo turned the game around. After a good combination on the right, Vitinho crossed and Arthur Cabral, diving, beat the defense to head the ball into the net.

The game became electric. At six minutes, Botafogo managed a lightning counterattack that ended with a goal by Barrera. But at the start of the play there was a penalty for Fortaleza. VAR called the referee, who confirmed Marçal's handball and the penalty. Bareiro converted and tied the match.

From then on, the game opened up, with both teams seeking the goal. A shot from Artur and a header from Pochettino scared both teams, but neither was enough to change the score. But at 38 minutes, Montoro took a corner and Marçal headed it into the back of the net.

Botafogo sealed Fortaleza's fate at 49 minutes of the second half. Kauan Toledo led a counterattack, crossed from the left, and Mateo Ponte finished into the net.

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