“The world’s first continental champion. This is how Vasco de Gama club describes itself on its social networks. Just that. A kind of ‘first forever’ with Brazilian sauce. Which should not confuse Dimitri Payet too much, he is the ex-Marseille. Because the Reunion club signed Thursday August 17th in Vasco da Gama, who won the South American Championship of Champions Clubs in 1948, is considered the world’s first continental club competition.Evidence that Payet has joined a club with a long history.
Name inspired by the famous Portuguese navigator
Founded in 1898, the Club de Regatas Vasco da Gama owes its name to the famous Portuguese navigator. The founders of the team – Portuguese immigrants – in search of a name inspired by the 400th anniversary of the opening of the sea route to the Indies (which happened in 1498), which was carried out by Vasco da Gama, to honor him.
Vasco de Gama is a famous team in Rio de Janeiro, unlike Fluminense, Botafogo or Flamengo, it is an important club in XXH century, with four Brazilian championships (1974, 1989, 1997 and 2000), a Copa Libertadores (1998) and an Intercontinental Cup (1998). But the new millennium is a bit more complex for karaoke shaping. He no longer won a title and, even worse, dropped to D2 for the first time in its history in 2008, and then lifted in the next decade. She returned to D1 for the last time in 2022, but is still struggling to sustain herself this season.
A club close to relegation
Vasco da Gama is currently 19 years oldH And the penultimate one of the Brazilian league. With 13 points, the club started poorly, knowing that the final four were relegated. According to a study he did Earth Vasco only has a 28% chance of survival.
In the workforce, Payet will find some former Ligue 1 players (ex-Lillois Léo Jardim and ex-Nicois Robson Bambu) and top European clubs (Gary Medel passed from Inter Milan, Maicon passed through Porto, Alex Teixeira passed from Shakhtar Donetsk). Above all, he will discover that the public has polarized his cause. He’s already been welcomed as a rock star at the Rio airport – even though he hasn’t officially signed his contract yet! -, the Frenchman was voted in the second biggest transfer of the century to Vasco.
Read also. video. The crazy welcome given by the Vasco de Gama supporters to Dimitri Payet
With 28.5% of the vote in his poll Ge He arrived behind Juninho, one of the great players that Vasco da Gama passed, such as Leonidas, Roberto Dynamite (top scorer in the club’s history), Bebeto, Dunga, Romário, Sonny Anderson, Philippe Coutinho and Nene. .
