2021 Copa do Nordeste
The 2021 Copa do Nordeste was the 18th edition of the main football tournament featuring teams from the Brazilian Northeast Region. The competition featured 16 clubs, with Bahia, Ceará and Pernambuco having two seeds each, and Rio Grande do Norte, Sergipe, Alagoas, Paraíba, Maranhão and Piauí with one seed each. Four teams were decided by a qualifying tournament (Pré-Copa do Nordeste). The Copa do Nordeste began on 27 February and ended on 8 May. Tied on aggregate 2–2, Bahia defeated the defending champions Ceará on penalties in the finals to win their fourth title. As champions, Bahia qualified for the third round of the 2022 Copa do Brasil. Format In this season, 12 teams (9 state league champions and best placed teams in the 2020 CBF ranking from Bahia, Ceará and Pernambuco) gained direct entries into the group stage while the other four berths were decided by the Pré-Copa do Nordeste. For the group stage, the 16 teams were drawn into two groups. Each team played once against the eight clubs from the other group. Top four teams qualified for the final stages. Quarter-finals and semi-finals were played on a single-leg basis and finals were played on a home-and-away two-legged