Palmeiras Advances to Copa do Brasil Final Amid Controversy Over Refereeing Decisions
On Sunday, October 8, Palmeiras secured their place in the 2026 Copa do Brasil final by defeating Vasco at São Januário. In a year marked by success, Palmeiras also reached the Conmebol Libertadores final against Estudiantes and currently holds second place in the Brasileirão with just four rounds remaining.
Despite these achievements, coach Abel Ferreira remains haunted by the events of the 2025 Libertadores final. His frustration stems from a specific incident involving defensive midfielder Erick Pulgar, who only received a yellow card after a challenge that caught Bruno Fuchs on the shin. Palmeiras ultimately finished as runners-up in that tournament, losing 1–0 to Flamengo, with the victory decided by a goal from Danilo.
Addressing the media following Palmeiras’ advancement to the Copa do Brasil final, Ferreira brought attention back to the controversial refereeing decisions. In the match against Vasco just 20 minutes in, Gabriel Pereira also committed a foul on Jhon Arias, yet similarly was not shown a red card.
Ferreira further highlighted the issue surrounding a penalty that Vasco was denied in the first leg at Nubank Parque for a handball by Barboza. He expressed concern about the media’s response to such incidents, stating, “I practically made a promise to myself that I wouldn’t talk about refereeing, but I will talk about the press. I want to see whether the press will cover the Arias incident the way they covered the Barboza incident. That’s all I want to see. I lost a Libertadores title over an incident like this.”
He added, “I’ll avoid talking about the referee. I’m asking whether the press will cover the same incident the way they covered Barboza’s. Did anyone talk about the Remo game there? Because it was disallowed and shouldn’t have been disallowed. I’ve realized I should avoid talking about refereeing.”
