File photo, 2024. Photo: Túllio F, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Two Brazil Cup Semifinals Are Still Open

Two Brazilian giants hold small leads and two furious rivals need a comeback. Grêmio, from Porto Alegre, lead Atlético Mineiro 2-0 and Palmeiras, from São Paulo, lead Vasco da Gama 1-0 after the first legs of the Copa do Brasil semifinals on Sunday, 1 November.

The return legs decide who plays in the single-match final on 6 December at the Mané Garrincha stadium in Brasília. Our Copa do Brasil semifinals hub tracks both ties.

Atlético-MG host Grêmio on Saturday, 7 November, at 4 p.m. ET (6 p.m. Brasília time) at their home ground, Arena MRV, in Belo Horizonte. Vasco host Palmeiras on Sunday, 8 November, at 3 p.m. ET (5 p.m. Brasília time) at São Januário in Rio de Janeiro.

File photo: fans outside Nubank Parque, the Palmeiras stadium in São Paulo, before an earlier match.

What Each Team Needs

Atlético must win by three goals or more to reach the final. A two-goal win levels the tie at 2-2 and sends it to a penalty shootout, while any smaller win or a draw puts Grêmio through.

Palmeiras advance with a draw or any win. Vasco need a win by two goals or more, because a one-goal win only levels the tie at 1-1 and forces penalties.

Vasco Press a Refereeing Complaint

Palmeiras won the first leg through a first-half goal by Maurício, set up by his teammate Marlon Freitas. Vasco defender Alan Saldivia was sent off for a second yellow card and misses the return leg.

Vasco also say a possible handball penalty against Alexander Barboza was not given, and the video assistant referee (VAR) did not intervene. Vasco football director Admar Lopes, speaking in Portuguese, called the refereeing “completely shameful” and said it may have decided a finalist through “grotesque errors”.

He asked the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF), the national governing body, to take care in choosing the referees for the return leg.

Venue and Squad Changes

Vasco will play at São Januário rather than the Maracanã, the stadium operated by a private consortium that had offered to host. On 31 October, Rio state authorities set an exceptional capacity of 24,155 for this match only, with 2,000 tickets for Palmeiras.

Palmeiras are without the injured Paulinho and Ramón Sosa, and Jefté is provisionally suspended over a doping case.

Palmeiras, coached by Abel Ferreira, are second in the Brasileirão, the national league, with 70 points and 3 behind Flamengo. They play Remo, another Brazilian club, on Thursday, 5 November, at 5:30 p.m. ET.

What Prediction Markets Say

Polymarket, a crypto-based prediction market, priced the cup winner on 3 November at 4:22 p.m. ET: Palmeiras 45.5%, Grêmio 25.0%, Vasco 12.0% and Atlético Mineiro 11.5%. About US$10,679 had been traded, so the market is thin and prices are bets, not polls.

Why we show this: prediction markets turn real-money bets into a live probability that moves within minutes of the news, which is why investors, campaigns and newsrooms in the United States now follow them closely. We show them next to polls and official results, never instead of them.

What It Means for US Readers

Kick-offs fall at 4 p.m. ET on Saturday and 3 p.m. ET on Sunday, after US clocks went back on 1 November. Brasília is now two hours ahead of Eastern Time.

We could not confirm a US broadcaster for either leg, so check listings before kick-off. Brazilian broadcast details are also unconfirmed.

What Is Not Known

Referees for both return legs have not been announced. It is not known whether Brazil’s sports tribunal will add a ban to Saldivia’s red card.

We found no poll and no US broadcaster listing.

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Frequently Asked Questions

When are the Copa do Brasil semifinal return legs?

Atlético-MG host Grêmio on Saturday, 7 November, at 4 p.m. ET. Vasco host Palmeiras on Sunday, 8 November, at 3 p.m. ET.

What does each side need to reach the final?

Atlético must win by three goals or more, and Vasco by two or more. Palmeiras advance with a draw or any win, and Grêmio with a draw, a win or a one-goal loss.

This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief

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