By Gustavo Castilho
With Sport, Santa Cruz and Salgueiro, Pernambuco is the only state with three representatives
This morning’s raffle at CBF headquarters, in Rio de Janeiro, defined the groups of the 2021 Northeast Cup. Beginning on February 27, the regional tournament competition has 16 clubs. The state of Pernambuco is the only one in the region that has three teams (Sport, Santa Cruz and Salgueiro).
Divided into two groups with eight teams each, the tournament aims at a good number of classics, as the groups face off. After eight rounds, with the teams facing the components of the other group, the top four of each group advance to the quarterfinals, played in a single game as well as the semifinals. Only the decision, in the beginning of May, happens in two games.
Ceará is the current champion of the competition. Last season, due to the pandemic, all the knockout was promoted in a single location, in Bahia. In the 2021 edition, whoever takes the trophy can pocket an amount of R $ 3.56 million, adding the shares of the first phase and the elimination stages.
Group Switching:
Group A:
Bahia, Ceará, Santa Cruz, CRB, Sampaio Corrêa, Treze, Confiança, 4th of July
Group B:
Vitória, Sport, Fortaleza, CSA, Botafogo-SP, Salgueiro, ABC, Altos
Clash Date:
Group stage: 27/2 to 12/4
Quarter-Finals: 4/17 (single date)
Semifinal: 24/4 (single date)
Final: 1st / 5 and 8/5
