A return to the top flight

This Saturday, 22 August 2026, was a landmark day for Brazilian women’s football.

Vasco da Gama beat Taubaté 2–1 in the second leg of the quarter-finals of the Brazilian Women’s Championship Série A2. Having already won the first leg 2–0, the result confirmed the club’s promotion to the top flight.

In 2027, Vasco – the club where ‘The Queen’ Marta took her first steps in her career – will be back in Série A1.

The promotion came on the very weekend the club celebrated 128 years since its foundation and 103 years of its women’s football history.

The early chapters of history

Founded in 1898, Vasco formed its first women’s team in 1923. The team was made up of club members and female supporters, inspired by the ‘Camisas Negras’ – the famous Vasco men’s side which, that very same year, made its mark through the fight against racism and by winning the Carioca Championship.

That first team, called Sport Club Feminino Vasco da Gama, was not officially recognised at the time, but continued to play until 1941, when Getúlio Vargas’s government banned women’s football in Brazil.

The sport was not regulated and officially recognised again until 1983, more than 40 years later.

Vasco, for its part, resumed women’s football in the 1990s – and came back with a bang. The club dominated the national scene and won four league titles throughout the decade, as well as producing some of the country’s most beloved players, such as Pretinha, Fanta, Cenira and Meg.

The arrival of the Queen

It was against this backdrop that, in 2000, a young girl of just 14 arrived in Rio de Janeiro.

Marta had travelled more than 2,000 km from the small town of Dois Riachos, in Alagoas, with a clear goal: to trial for Vasco da Gama, having caught the eye as a great prospect whilst playing for Centro Sportivo Alagoano (CSA).

At the club, she impressed from the outset with her extraordinary talent and was welcomed by coach Helena Pacheco, who became her mentor during those early years.

In 2001, Marta won the Brazilian Under-19 Championship with Vasco. The following year, aged 16, she was called up for the first time to the Brazilian national team and competed in the Under-19 World Cup in Canada, representing the club. Although Brazil finished fourth, Marta topped the competition’s scoring charts with six goals and was also awarded the Silver Ball as the second-best player of the tournament.

The end of a remarkable spell

But despite her meteoric rise, life was far from easy for the promising young player. At the time, women’s football still occupied a very small space within Brazilian sport, and Marta felt this first-hand. As she herself recalled: “At Vasco, I didn’t receive a salary. It was a small allowance, the bare minimum, to help me get by in Rio. I lived in the club’s accommodation. At first, I even lived in the home of the people who helped me get to Rio.” (Football Museum)

To make matters worse, just as Marta was beginning to make a name for herself in Brazil whilst playing for Vasco, the club disbanded its women’s team due to financial difficulties.

Marta was left devastated: “It was a rather desperate time for me, because I didn’t want to go back to Alagoas. I wanted to stay in the Rio–São Paulo area, where there was much greater visibility. And I didn’t know what to do.” (Football Museum)

Fortunately, Pacheco found a new team for the young star, and Marta continued her career at Santa Cruz, in Minas Gerais.

From then on, her career went from strength to strength. Nominated three times for the ‘Ballon d'Or’, Marta has won major titles for both clubs and the national team, including four consecutive Damallsvenskan titles with Umeå IK in Sweden and four South American Women’s Championships. She is also the all-time top scorer in the history of the Brazilian national team (including both men and women), with 122 goals, as well as being the all-time leading goalscorer in World Cup history, with 17 goals in the competition.

Banner

Years of hardship

The history of women’s football at Vasco, on the other hand, has been far more turbulent.

After being disbanded in 2003, the women’s section only resumed operations in 2009. The Brazilian Women’s Championship was created in 2013, 30 years after women’s football was officially recognised in Brazil, whilst the second division was established a few years later.

In 2016, Vasco competed in the top flight for the last time. Their relegation was followed by years of difficulties, and just two years ago, the club was playing in the third tier of Brazilian football.

Now, however, 2026 has marked a new phase for the team. After years of struggling to maintain a consistent level of performance, Vasco is regaining its footing, driven by increased investment and fundraising campaigns focused on women’s football.

A lasting connection

Marta, now aged 40, is regarded as one of the greatest players of all time. She currently plays for Orlando Pride in the United States, but has never forgotten the club that helped her take the first steps in her historic career.

Earlier this year, Vasco’s women’s football team created a ‘welcome pack’ for new signings and players in the current squad. The kit traces the club’s history and includes a message from Marta herself, in which she reflects on her three years at Vasco. This period is also celebrated at the club’s museum, with exclusive photos and records.

This month, Vasco’s women’s team also visited the ‘Memorial Rainha Marta’ in Maceió, the capital of Alagoas.

The bond between Marta and Vasco, therefore, remains as strong as ever.

A new chapter

Now, with the club back in the top flight of Brazilian football after a decade, the question remains: will we see new stars emerge who are capable of breaking records and making their mark as significantly as Marta did?

Only time will tell. But if there is one example that illustrates Vasco’s potential to unearth talent and launch extraordinary careers, it is precisely the story of Marta herself.