O Expresso da Vitória foi o esquadrão do Vasco da Gama da segunda metade dos anos 1940, campeão carioca em 1945, 1947, 1949 e 1950 e vencedor do Sul-Americano de Campeões de 1948.
Vasco da Gama – The Express of Victory
The Express of Victory was Vasco da Gama's squad that dominated Rio de Janeiro football in the second half of the 1940s. The team also won the 1948 South American Champions Championship, considered the predecessor to the Copa Libertadores.
History
The nickname Express of Victory identifies Vasco da Gama's team that, from the mid-1940s, practiced offensive and fast football and accumulated achievements in Rio de Janeiro. The club, founded in 1898 by the Portuguese community and with stadium inaugurated in 1927 in São Cristóvão, experienced during this period one of the most victorious phases of its history. In the Carioca Championship, Vasco was champion in 1945, 1947, 1949 and 1950. The squad brought together names such as goalkeeper Barbosa, defender Augusto, midfielder Danilo Alvim, forward Ademir de Menezes, as well as Chico, Maneca and Friaça, who made the Vasco attack one of the most feared in the country. In 1948, Vasco won in Santiago, Chile, the South American Champions Championship, a tournament organized by Colo-Colo that brought together the national champions of South America. The competition is recognized by Conmebol as the predecessor to the Copa Libertadores of America, which gives the title continental historical importance. The team's brilliance was reflected in the Brazilian national team. Several starters of Brazil in the 1950 World Cup, held at the Maracanã, came from Vasco, and Ademir was the tournament's top scorer with 8 goals. Barbosa, goalkeeper of that campaign, was also the foundation of the Vasco squad.