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Defending Gordon Jago Super Group Champions Botafogo to Return to 2026 Dallas Cup presented by Coca-Cola
- eboehmer88
- 24 hours ago
- 2 min read
DALLAS, Texas (Tuesday, Nov. 4) – Dallas Cup, the oldest and most prestigious international youth soccer tournament in the United States, has announced that Botafogo de Futebol e Regatas will return to defend their Gordon Jago Super Group title at the 2026 Dallas Cup presented by Coca-Cola. The club from Rio de Janeiro captured their first Super Group title in emphatic fashion earlier this year, completing one of the most impressive runs in recent tournament memory. Botafogo went undefeated throughout the 2025 competition, earning group stage victories over FC Dallas, Albion Hurricanes FC, and Germany’s Eintracht Frankfurt. In the semifinals, they defeated four-time Super Group champions Tigres UANL with a decisive 3–1 win before cruising past São Paulo FC in an all-Brazilian final, 3–0, to lift the iconic Boot & Ball trophy. Across their five matches, Botafogo scored 17 goals while conceding just one.
The 2026 edition will mark the fourth consecutive Dallas Cup appearance for Botafogo, who have quickly become a consistent force at the tournament. In 2024, they also enjoyed an impressive campaign, going undefeated in group play with wins over FC Midtjylland (Denmark), Club Santos Laguna (Mexico), and St. Louis City SC (USA), before narrowly falling 2–1 to FC Dallas in the semifinals.
Brazilian clubs have a storied history at the Dallas Cup, capturing a record 13 Gordon Jago Super Group titles since the elite bracket’s formation in 1990. Botafogo will aim to become the first back-to-back Super Group champion since Tigres (2018 & 2019) and just the sixth team all-time to accomplish the feat, joining Real Madrid (1993–94), EC Vitória (1996–97), SC Corinthians (1999–2000), and Clube Atlético Paranaense (2004–05).
Botafogo joins Aston Villa FC of the English Premier League as confirmed participants in the 2026 Gordon Jago Super Group, which will feature 12 elite teams from top professional clubs and national federations around the world competing for the Boot & Ball trophy next spring.
The 2026 Dallas Cup presented by Coca-Cola will build upon a record-breaking 2025 tournament, which for the first time featured expanded Boys’ and Girls’ divisions (U10–U19).
Applications for the 2026 tournament are currently open through November 30, 2025.
For more information or to apply, visit www.DallasCup.org or follow @DallasCup on social media for the latest updates.
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