Vasco da Gama is seeking to restore permission to stage its Copa Sudamericana semifinal against Boca Juniors at Maracanã after a Rio de Janeiro court suspended an earlier authorization following a challenge by the Fla-Flu Consortium.¹

For Vasco, the central issue is the practical cost of changing venues shortly before the match, scheduled for October 20. In a new filing to the Rio Court of Justice, the club said 46,014 tickets had already been sold when it sought reconsideration of the suspension. It argued that supporters bought tickets based on Maracanã’s specific seating areas and access routes, and that many fans would be travelling from elsewhere in Brazil and abroad.²

The club also contrasts Maracanã with Nilton Santos Stadium, a potential alternative. Vasco says the venue’s authorized capacity of 44,661 is below the number of tickets already sold, creating the prospect of cancellations and refunds. It says it has allocated 4,000 tickets to Boca supporters and would need to preserve separate areas for visiting fans, security and crowd circulation.

Vasco further maintains that a switch would complicate arrangements for roughly 250 media workers, including broadcast and interview facilities planned under CONMEBOL requirements. Its position is that restoring the original injunction would avoid disruption to spectators, visiting supporters and coverage of the continental fixture.²

The court action, however, has shifted the immediate balance toward the consortium’s objection. The earlier ruling had allowed Vasco to nominate Maracanã to CONMEBOL and begin ticket sales, but the later suspension leaves the club awaiting a decision from the court’s first vice-president, Suely Lopes Magalhães.¹