Botafogo's drop was on the cards for many Brazilian soccer pundits because the club has suffered a gradual decline, despite an illustrious past.

For Palmeiras, the prospect of second division football was a greater shock since the club won the Brazilian championship in 1993 and 1994, and was South American champion as recently as 1999.

Palmeiras's fate was sealed by a dramatic 4-3 defeat at Vitoria.

The visitors fought hard to stay in the game and equalised twice, with goals by Flavio and Nene.

But a defensive lapse by Alexandre let Ze Roberto in to score the third Vitoria goal.

Ze Roberto added a fourth as Palmeiras's desperate attempts to equalise opened gaps in their own defence.

The incredulous Palmeiras fans barely interrupted their display of grief when Arce scored a penalty in the dying seconds.

The spectacle of relegation was a far cry from the period in the mid-1990s, when coach Wanderley Luxemburgo led a team of rising stars like Rivaldo, Edmundo and Zinho to success and earned the club the "academy of football" tag.

Luxemburgo returned to Palmeiras, via Corinthians, for the start of the current season, but he was controversially dismissed early in the campaign.

Internal disputes and wage cuts increased the air of depression at the club.

Coach Levir Culpi put the blame squarely on the players.

'The team had several opportunities to avoid relegation, but proved unable to keep us up. Now we are going to have the pay the price for our own incompetence,' he said.

Botafogo's fate was all-but sealed even before Sunday's 1-0 defeat at the hands of table-topping Sao Paulo.

'This humiliation is much worse than losing a final, because you get over that the next day. It's sad, but Botafogo will bounce back,' said coach Carlos Alberto Torres.

Portuguesa, who were championship finalists in 1996, were also relegated after crashing 4-2 against Bahia.

FINAL FLOURISH

Unlike their fellow relegation victims, Gama managed to go out with a bang. Their 4-0 home win against Coritiba dashed the visitors hopes of a place in the top eight.

The Brazilian championship now switches to a knock out competition, for which eight clubs have qualified.

Sao Caetano confirmed their position in second place with a 3-2 home win against Santos.

The young Santos team has been one of the relevations of the Brazilian championship, but results have dropped off in recent weeks.

They face a tough test against a slick Sao Paulo team in next Sunday's quarter-final clash.

Claudecir, who scored both Santos goals against Sao Caetano offered his recipe for success.

'The team has to go forward... that has always been the way....just to never stop trying to find a route to goal,' he said.

Third-placed Corinthians drew 1-1 with Vasco but served up more of the soporific loose play that has characterised their game since confirming their place in the last eight.

Corinthians will meet Atletico Mineiro in a quarter-final match on Sunday.

Gremio beat Atletico Mineiro to secure fifth place and an encounter with Juventude. Anderson Lima scored the only goal of the game from a 25th minute penalty.

Fluminense overhauled a 2-0 deficit to beat Ponte Preta 3-2 and book a meeting with Sao Caetano.

Roni was the man of the match, scoring Fluminense's first from a Romario pass and adding a second after an exchange of passes with Magno Alves.