Vasco da Gama's Club Sale to Marcos Lamacchia: What's Agreed and What's Still Missing
Vasco da Gama has had a public tender in force since July 15, 2026, to sell 90% of its “SAF” (the corporate entity that owns the club’s football operations, Brazil’s version of a club holding company), with businessman Marcos Lamacchia named the anchor bidder. A Rio de Janeiro court set a deadline of September 30, 2026, to close the deal. That doesn’t mean Lamacchia already owns the club: a competitive bidding phase, a club council vote, and final court approval all still stand between the pre-agreement and a signed contract.
In short, the shape and the numbers of the pre-agreement are settled. What’s missing is the legal and corporate process that turns that pre-agreement into an actual closing.
Who is Marcos Lamacchia
Marcos Faria Lamacchia is a businessman, son of José Lamacchia and grandson of banker Aloysio de Andrade Faria, founder of Banco Real. He runs Blue Star, an asset management firm founded in 2011, and previously served as a director at Crefisa — a lender that, coincidentally, already holds a bridge loan (DIP financing) used by Vasco during its court-supervised financial restructuring. The vehicle used for the bid is called Almirante Participações e Empreendimentos S.A.
According to Vasco president Pedrinho, Lamacchia is the investor “at a much more advanced stage than all the others” among the groups that have approached the club since 777 Partners’ exit in early 2024.
How the negotiation got here
- Early 2024 — 777 Partners exits Vasco’s ownership amid the group’s financial crisis, and the club enters court-supervised debt restructuring (Brazil’s equivalent of Chapter 11, called recuperação judicial).
- June 10, 2026 — reports detail how Vasco’s bylaws handle approval of a control sale: the Deliberative Council must approve by a two-thirds vote, after opinions from the Fiscal and Honorary Councils, and reveal a bylaw “escape route”: if the Council rejects the proposal three times in a row, the board can bring it to a General Assembly, where a simple majority of those present is enough.
- July 15, 2026 — Rio de Janeiro’s 4th Corporate Court publishes the tender authorizing the sale of 90% of the new club entity’s shares, names Lamacchia the anchor bidder (“stalking horse”), and sets a final deadline of September 30, 2026.
- August 12, 2026 — lawyer André Sica confirms contract adjustments (a reduced break-up fee and stronger financial guarantees) and details the judicial scrutiny of the process.
What’s already agreed
The pre-agreement, formalized in July’s tender, covers the sale of up to 90% of the club entity’s shares for a package that could exceed R$2 billion (roughly $370 million) in commitments over the coming years. The key figures:
| Item | Committed value |
|---|---|
| Total minimum investment | R$650 million over 5 years |
| Professional football | R$500 million (5 annual installments of R$100 million, inflation-adjusted, 2026–2030) |
| Training facility | R$120 million over 10 years |
| Youth academy infrastructure | R$30 million in the first 2 years |
| Tax-incentive fundraising target (Olympic sports) | up to R$150 million |
| Bridge loan (DIP) conversion with Crefisa | roughly R$80 million |
| Debt assumed (tied to 777 Partners/A-CAP exit) | roughly R$1.3 billion, possibly reducible to R$700–800 million after negotiation |
Beyond the numbers, the pre-agreement includes important corporate conditions:
- 10-year lock-up — the buyer can’t sell its stake or distribute dividends for a decade, reinvesting proceeds into club operations instead.
- Board seat retained — the Vasco da Gama association keeps a seat on the new entity’s board even as a minority shareholder.
- Acquisition of the 777-linked stake — Lamacchia’s group commits to buying the roughly 31% stake currently tied to the dispute with A-CAP, 777’s successor in Brazil.
- Anchor bidder (“stalking horse”) status — as the party that arrived first with a solid proposal, Lamacchia gets preference in the competitive process: if another investor offers more, he can match it. If he doesn’t match and loses the deal, he receives R$50 million in compensation for the work already done.
What’s still missing before it closes
Even with the tender published, the deal only becomes final after:
- A competitive bidding round — the tender leaves room for other investors to submit competing offers before closing.
- Deliberative Council approval — by a two-thirds vote, following opinions from the Fiscal and Honorary Councils, per articles 136 to 138 of Vasco’s bylaws. If the Council blocks the proposal three times, the board can call a General Assembly, where a simple majority suffices.
- Statements from the public prosecutor and a ruling from the restructuring judge — formal steps, since the entire operation runs under court supervision.
- Review by ANRESF — Brazil’s National Football Regulation and Sustainability Agency needs to sign off on the deal under the country’s financial fair play framework.
- Final corporate restructuring and signing (closing) — only once the steps above are cleared does the deal get signed and registered.
All of this has to happen by September 30, 2026, the deadline set in the court’s own tender. Lamacchia’s lawyer André Sica has described the operation as “the most publicized in Brazil,” noting that even first-team player signings are currently brought to the attention of the judge overseeing the restructuring case.
Why this sale matters for Vasco
The club is under real cash pressure: the roughly R$80 million bridge loan (DIP financing) used to cover day-to-day expenses is close to its limit, and the restructuring process requires annual payments to creditors estimated between R$25 million and R$30 million. An investor willing to absorb part of that debt and inject fresh capital is currently the most concrete path out of court supervision without repeating the governance model that ended with 777 Partners’ turbulent exit.
That’s also why the club treats financial fair play as tightly linked to the sale: a club under restructuring that fails to meet its payment obligations risks being blocked by the regulator during transfer windows, and it’s worth understanding what a transfer ban is and why it stops a club from signing players to gauge the sporting risk of a poorly managed restructuring.
Frequently asked questions
Does Lamacchia already own Vasco? No. He holds anchor-bidder status with preference in the process, but the deal only becomes final after the competitive bidding round, Deliberative Council approval (or a General Assembly vote if the Council blocks it), and final court approval.
What happens if the September 30 deadline isn’t met? The sources consulted don’t detail an automatic penalty for missing the deadline; it’s the horizon set by the court’s own tender for completing every step of the process.
Why does Vasco need to sell now? Because the club is under court-supervised restructuring, with a bridge loan near its limit and mandatory annual payments to creditors. A new investor with fresh capital is currently the board’s clearest path to balancing the books without repeating the 777 Partners experience.
While this saga plays out, Brazil’s football calendar keeps moving: it’s also worth tracking when Brazil’s 2026 transfer window closes, since any change of control at the club level tends to affect its transfer planning.