Game Information

17/07/2025 – Kick Off (01:30 GMT)

Botafogo
Despite losing key players like Igor Jesus and Jair, Botafogo wasted no time in extending their winning run with a 2-0 victory over fellow Rio de Janeiro rivals Vasco da Gama.

After a quiet first half, Arthur Cabral opened the scoring shortly after the break, with Nathan Fernandes adding a second to seal the win, making it three victories in a row for Botafogo in the league.

Interestingly, head coach Davide Ancelotti wasn’t officially registered as manager for that match and instead had to be listed as an assistant goalkeeper coach. However, for this fixture, he will be formally on the touchline as the official manager, as Botafogo look to continue their strong recent form.

They remain unbeaten in domestic competition since May, when they suffered a narrow 1-0 loss to Capita in the Copa do Brasil, a defeat that didn’t stop them progressing in the tournament.

Vitória
Vitória come into this match sitting inside the bottom four. From their 13 matches, they’ve managed just two wins, alongside five draws and six defeats, leaving them in 18th place on 11 points. However, with things so tight at the bottom, a win here could be enough to lift them out of the relegation zone.

At the weekend, they suffered their second consecutive defeat, and their winless run has now stretched to five matches, something they’ll be desperate to put right. The most frustrating part of their latest loss was that it looked like they would hang on for a point, only for Internacional’s Bruno Tabata to strike in stoppage time and send Vitória home empty-handed.

Prediction – Botafogo 2-1 Vitória