| Season | 1981 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Flamengo |
| Relegated | Serrano Olaria |
| Taça de Ouro | Fluminense Flamengo Vasco da Gama Botafogo Bangu |
| Taça de Prata | América Volta Redonda Americano Campo Grande |
| Matches played | 201 |
| Goals scored | 488 (2.43 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Roberto Dinamite (Vasco da Gama) - 31 goals |
| Biggest home win | Flamengo 7-0 Americano (June 3, 1981) |
| Biggest away win | Americano 0-5 Vasco da Gama (September 24, 1981) |
| Highest scoring | Flamengo 7-0 Americano (June 3, 1981) Flamengo 5-2 Campo Grande (June 21, 1981) Fluminense 5-2 Volta Redonda (September 16, 1981) Flamengo 6-1 Americano (November 10, 1981) |
← 1980 1982 → | |
The 1981 edition of the Campeonato Carioca kicked off on May 23, 1981 and ended on December 6, 1981. It is the official tournament organized by FFERJ (Federação de Futebol do Estado do Rio de Janeiro, or Rio de Janeiro State Football Federation. Only clubs based in the Rio de Janeiro State are allowed to play. Twelve teams contested this edition. Flamengo won the title for the 21st time. Serrano and Olaria were relegated.[1][2]
The tournament would be divided in four stages:[2][1]
This tournament was played in late 1980, by the four teams that had been eliminated in the first round of the 1980 championship, and those that had been eliminated in the preliminary tournament of that year, to define the two teams that would play in the championship of 1981.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Olaria | 7 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 7 | 1 | +6 | 10 | Qualified |
| 2 | Madureira | 7 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 1 | +5 | 10 | |
| 3 | Bonsucesso | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 14 | 7 | +7 | 9 | Relegated |
| 4 | Portuguesa | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 8 | 5 | +3 | 9 | |
| 5 | São Cristóvão | 7 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 3 | +2 | 7 | |
| 6 | Goytacaz | 7 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 7 | −3 | 5 | |
| 7 | Friburguense | 7 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 11 | −5 | 3 | |
| 8 | Niterói | 7 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 18 | −15 | 3 |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Flamengo | 11 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 26 | 8 | +18 | 17 | Qualified to Final phase |
| 2 | América | 11 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 12 | 4 | +8 | 16 | |
| 3 | Botafogo | 11 | 4 | 7 | 0 | 10 | 5 | +5 | 15 | |
| 4 | Vasco da Gama | 11 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 19 | 10 | +9 | 14 | |
| 5 | Bangu | 11 | 2 | 8 | 1 | 12 | 12 | 0 | 12 | |
| 6 | Campo Grande | 11 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 16 | 17 | −1 | 11 | |
| 7 | Americano | 11 | 2 | 6 | 3 | 9 | 16 | −7 | 10 | |
| 8 | Fluminense | 11 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 12 | 18 | −6 | 9 | |
| 9 | Volta Redonda | 11 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 13 | 18 | −5 | 8 | |
| 10 | Serrano | 11 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 10 | 14 | −4 | 7 | |
| 11 | Olaria | 11 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 7 | 12 | −5 | 7 | |
| 12 | Madureira | 11 | 2 | 2 | 7 | 10 | 22 | −12 | 6 |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vasco da Gama | 11 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 26 | 8 | +18 | 20 | Qualified to Final phase |
| 2 | Flamengo | 11 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 21 | 6 | +15 | 17 | |
| 3 | Botafogo | 11 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 17 | 6 | +11 | 17 | |
| 4 | Bangu | 11 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 13 | 12 | +1 | 14 | |
| 5 | Fluminense | 11 | 6 | 1 | 4 | 18 | 15 | +3 | 13 | |
| 6 | América | 11 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 14 | 11 | +3 | 13 | |
| 7 | Campo Grande | 11 | 5 | 2 | 4 | 12 | 11 | +1 | 12 | |
| 8 | Volta Redonda | 11 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 12 | 19 | −7 | 7 | |
| 9 | Serrano | 11 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 13 | −6 | 6 | |
| 10 | Olaria | 11 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 6 | 18 | −12 | 5 | |
| 11 | Americano | 11 | 1 | 2 | 8 | 9 | 18 | −9 | 4 | |
| 12 | Madureira | 11 | 0 | 4 | 7 | 4 | 22 | −18 | 4 |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Flamengo | 10 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 34 | 5 | +29 | 18[a] | Qualified to Final phase |
| 2 | Vasco da Gama | 10 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 20 | 10 | +10 | 15[a] | |
| 3 | Fluminense | 11 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 23 | 15 | +8 | 14 | |
| 4 | Botafogo | 11 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 17 | 13 | +4 | 14 | |
| 5 | Bangu | 11 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 12 | 9 | +3 | 12 | |
| 6 | Americano | 11 | 5 | 1 | 5 | 11 | 19 | −8 | 11 | |
| 7 | Madureira | 11 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 9 | 16 | −7 | 11 | |
| 8 | Volta Redonda | 11 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 13 | 17 | −4 | 10 | |
| 9 | Campo Grande | 11 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 11 | −5 | 9 | |
| 10 | Serrano | 11 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 15 | −6 | 7 | |
| 11 | América | 11 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 8 | 18 | −10 | 7 | |
| 12 | Olaria | 11 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 5 | 18 | −13 | 2 |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Flamengo | 32 | 22 | 8 | 2 | 81 | 19 | +62 | 52 | Qualified to Final phase |
| 2 | Vasco da Gama | 32 | 21 | 7 | 4 | 65 | 28 | +37 | 49 | Taça de Ouro |
| 3 | Botafogo | 33 | 17 | 12 | 4 | 44 | 24 | +20 | 46 | |
| 4 | Bangu | 33 | 12 | 14 | 7 | 37 | 33 | +4 | 38 | |
| 5 | Fluminense | 33 | 14 | 8 | 11 | 53 | 48 | +5 | 36 | |
| 6 | América | 33 | 13 | 10 | 10 | 34 | 33 | +1 | 36 | Taça de Prata |
| 7 | Campo Grande | 33 | 12 | 8 | 13 | 34 | 39 | −5 | 32 | |
| 8 | Americano | 33 | 8 | 9 | 16 | 29 | 53 | −24 | 25 | |
| 9 | Volta Redonda | 33 | 6 | 13 | 14 | 38 | 54 | −16 | 25 | |
| 10 | Madureira | 33 | 6 | 9 | 18 | 23 | 60 | −37 | 21 | |
| 11 | Serrano | 33 | 5 | 10 | 18 | 26 | 42 | −16 | 20 | Relegated |
| 12 | Olaria | 33 | 4 | 6 | 23 | 18 | 48 | −30 | 14 |
| 29 November 1981 Final | Flamengo | 0 – 2 | Vasco da Gama | Maracanã, Rio de Janeiro |
Nunes  |
Roberto Dinamite  64', 77'Marquinho |
Attendance: 80,908 Referee: Alvimar Gaspar dos Reis |
| 2 December 1981 Replay | Vasco da Gama | 1 – 0 | Flamengo | Maracanã, Rio de Janeiro |
| Roberto Dinamite 88' João Luis |
Attendance: 45,704 Referee: Edson Alcantara do Amorim |
| 6 December 1981 Replay | Flamengo | 2 – 1 | Vasco da Gama | Maracanã, Rio de Janeiro |
| Adílio 20' Nunes 24' |
Ticão 83' |
Attendance: 161,989 Referee: Alvimar Gaspar dos Reis |
