Possible elimination could take São Paulo out of the 2025 Copa do Brasil

Beating Ituano in the last round could be worth more to the São Paulo than just qualifying for the quarterfinals of the Paulista championship: it is a way to guarantee your place in 2025 Brazilian Cup.

The regulations provide for five places for the national tournament via State and prioritize those classified. In a hypothetical elimination from São Paulo, for example, Portuguesa would be ahead of Tricolor in the general classification for having advanced to the quarterfinals.

The semi-finalists automatically guarantee a place, while the fifth place is filled by the one eliminated in the quarterfinals with the best campaign. São Paulo can be eliminated in the group stage with a score higher than three of those qualified for the knockout stage, but that doesn’t count.

In the event of elimination, São Paulo, for the purposes of regulating places in the Copa do Brasil, would have the ninth best campaign, behind the eight classified. Without Corinthians among the finalists, only three places could ‘go down’ compared to the clubs qualifying by other means: Palmeiras and Red Bull Bragantino via the Brasileirão or Copa do Brasil, and Santos, Novorizontino and Ponte Preta, if they qualify for the quarterfinals, via the title of Series B.

To be in the tournament next year without depending on anyone, São Paulo has three alternatives. The first is to reach the semi-finals of Paulistão, the second is to win this year’s Copa do Brasil and the third is to qualify for the Copa Libertadores via Brasileirão. A last alternative would be to compete in the São Paulo Football Federation Cup, which grants the champion a place in the national tournament.

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Beating Ituano and qualifying first can already guarantee a place in the Copa do Brasil even in the event of elimination in the quarterfinals if no other group leader is eliminated. In this scenario, Tricolor would probably have the best campaign among the finalists, with 22 or 23 points.