Flamengo takes the lead, but ends up losing to São Paulo in their Brasileirão debut

In the opening match of the 2026 Brasileirão, Flamengo was defeated by São Paulo 2-1 this Wednesday (28), at Morumbis, in the first round of the competition. Rubro-Negro took the lead with a goal from Plata, but ended up conceding goals from Luciano and Danielzinho. Now, Mais Querido focuses on the Supercopa do Brasil final against Corinthians on Sunday (1).

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The game

The first few minutes of play saw Flamengo dominating possession and exchanging passes to create space in São Paulo's defense. The first good chance came in the fifth minute with Carrascal, who made an individual run down the left flank, beat his marker, and shot towards goal. Rafael parried the shot to clear the danger.

Another chance created by the Flamengo attack came in the 13th minute when Cebolinha found Carrascal with a good pass. The Colombian found himself one-on-one with the goalkeeper, but shot wide. Minutes later, Plata advanced through midfield and passed to Cebolinha, who sped down the left flank, cut inside and took a shot from outside the box. Rafael parried it for a corner, almost being deceived by the bounce of the ball.

Flamengo continued to control the game with greater ball possession, but struggled to penetrate the Tricolor's penalty area. Despite their superiority, the red-and-black team failed to score and went into halftime with a goalless draw.

The teams returned for the second half without changes. Flamengo persisted in attack and opened the scoring in the eighth minute. The ball passed from player to player, eventually reaching Alex Sandro, who crossed to Pedro. The number 9 delivered a beautiful chest pass for Plata to finish with his left foot into the back of the net: 1-0.

After the goal, Filipe Luís made the first two substitutions for the team. Pedro came off for Arrascaeta and Everton Araujo was replaced by Jorginho. São Paulo reacted quickly and leveled the score at 15'. Enzo Díaz crossed the ball to Luciano, who headed it into the corner, giving Rossi no chance: 1-1.

Two more changes in the Flamengo team. Samuel Lino and Bruno Henrique came on for Cebolinha and Carrascal, respectively. São Paulo took the lead in the 25th minute. Luciano attempted a cross, Pulgar tried to intercept, and the ball fell to Danielzinho, who scored the second goal for São Paulo: 2-1.

In the final stretch, Flamengo continued their offensive push to find an equalizer. São Paulo's defense worked hard to clear the danger in the area. In stoppage time, Plata headed the ball towards goal, forcing a great save from Rafael. On the rebound, Arrascaeta anticipated the marking and sent the ball wide. After the final whistle, Jorginho went to complain to the referee, received a red card, and was sent off. A bitter debut in the Brasileirão. 

Flamengo

Rossi; Varela, Léo Ortiz, Léo Pereira and Alex Sandro; Erick Pulgar, Evertton Araujo (Jorginho) and Carrascal (Bruno Henrique); Plata, Everton Cebolinha (Samuel Lino) and Pedro (Arrascaeta).
Coach: Filipe Luís.

São Paulo

Rafael; Alan Franco, Arboleda and Sabino; ​​Maik (Cédric Soares), Marcos Antônio, Bobadilla, Danielzinho (Pablo Maia) and Enzo Díaz; Luciano (Lucas) and Calleri (Tapia).
Coach: Hernan Crespo. 

Week's agenda

Flamengo returns to the field next Sunday (1) to face Corinthians, at 16 pm, at Mané Garrincha, for the decision of the Brazilian Super Cup.

Technical sheet

São Paulo 2-1 Flamengo – Brazilian Championship 2026 | Round 1
Location: Morumbis-SP
Date and time: 28/01/2026 at 21:30 am
Referees: Wilton Pereira Sampaio (GO), Bruno Raphael Pires (GO) and Leone Carvalho Rocha (GO)
Red card: Jorginho (FLA)
Goals: Plata (8'2nd half), Luciano (15'2nd half) and Danielzinho (25'2nd half).