| Season | 1961 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 9 July – 27 December 1961 |
| Champions | Santos 1st Taça Brasil title 1st Brazilian title |
| Copa Libertadores | Santos |
| Matches played | 38 |
| Goals scored | 124 (3.26 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Pelé (7 goals) |
| Biggest home win | Grêmio 6-1 Metropol Santos 6-1 America-RJ |
← 1960 1962 → | |
The 1961 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A (officially the 1961 Taça Brasil) was the 4th edition of the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A. It began on July 12, 1961, and ended on December 27, 1961. Santos were crowned champions after beating Bahia in the final, drawing 1–1 in the home leg before winning 5–1 in the away leg.[1][2]
The competition was a single elimination knockout tournament featuring two-legged ties, with a Tie-Break (play-off) if the sides were tied on points (however, if the tie-break was a draw, the aggregate score of the first two legs was used to determine the winner).
Eighteen state champions qualified, along with the 1960 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A champions, Palmeiras.
| Semi-Final | Scores | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Points | 1st leg | 2nd leg | |||
| Santa Cruz-SE | 0 : 4 | Bahia | 1 - 3 | 0 - 2 | |
| CSA | 0 : 4 | Campinense | 2 - 3 | 1 - 2 | |
| Final | Scores | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Points | 1st leg | 2nd leg | |||
| Campinense | 0 : 4 | Bahia | 0 - 3 | 0 - 1 | |
| 1st Round | Scores | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Points | 1st leg | 2nd leg | |||
| Fortaleza | 3 : 1 | ABC | 3 - 1 | 1 - 1 | |
| Remo | 3 : 1 | Moto Club | 4 - 0 | 3 - 3 | |
| Final | Scores | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Points | 1st leg | 2nd leg | Tie-break | ||
| Remo | 2 : 2 | Fortaleza | 1 - 0 | 1 - 2 | 0 - 2 |
| Scores | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Points | 1st leg | 2nd leg | |||
| Bahia | 4 : 0 | Fortaleza | 2 - 0 | 3 - 2 | |
| Semi-Finals | Scores | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Points | 1st leg | 2nd leg | Tie-break | ||
| Palmeiras | 2 : 2 | Coritiba | 2 - 0 | 1 - 3 | 4 - 1 |
| Metropol | 2 : 2 | Grêmio | 1 - 6 | 3 - 2 | 1 - 3 |
| Final | Scores | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Points | 1st leg | 2nd leg | |||
| Grêmio | 1 : 3 | Palmeiras | 0 - 3 | 1 - 1 | |
| Semi-Finals | Scores | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Points | 1st leg | 2nd leg | |||
| Santo Antônio | 0 : 4 | Cruzeiro | 1 - 2 | 1 - 3 | |
| Fonseca | 1 : 3 | América-RJ | 0 - 0 | 0 - 3 | |
| Final | Scores | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Points | 1st leg | 2nd leg | |||
| América-RJ | 3 : 1 | Cruzeiro | 2 - 1 | 1 - 1 | |
| Scores | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Points | 1st leg | 2nd leg | |||
| Palmeiras | 1 : 3 | América-RJ | 1 - 1 | 1 - 2 | |
Santos and Náutico entered at this stage.
| Scores | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Points | 1st leg | 2nd leg | Tie-break | ||
| América-RJ | 2 : 2 | Santos | 2 - 6 | 1 - 0 | 1 - 6 |
| Náutico | 1 : 3 | Bahia | 0 - 0 | 0 - 1 | — |
